


Rise To The Top

by KrumbleKitty



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Anime), Pocket Monsters: X & Y | Pokemon X & Y Versions, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Abused Midoriya Inko, Abused Midoriya Izuku, Abusive Midoriya Hisashi, Alternate Universe - Pokemon Fusion, Angry Midoriya Izuku, Bakugou Katsuki is Bad at Feelings, Crossover, Dadzawa - An Aizawa Shota Zine, Elementless Midoriya Izuku, F/M, Gym Challenges (Pokemon), Midoriya Inko Needs a Hug, Midoriya Izuku & Shinsou Hitoshi Friendship, Midoriya Izuku Has Multiple Quirks, Midoriya Izuku Has PTSD - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Midoriya Izuku Has Panic Attacks, Midoriya Izuku Has a Quirk, Midoriya Izuku Needs A Break, Midoriya Izuku Needs A Hug, Midoriya Izuku Needs Help, Midoriya Izuku Needs Therapy, Midoriya Izuku has a sister, Older Sibling Midoriya Izuku, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pokemon, Pokemon Gyms, Protective Aizawa Shouta | Eraserhead, Quirkless Midoriya Izuku, Shinsou Hitoshi Replaces Mineta Minoru, Shinsou Hitoshi is in Class 1-A, Teenage Rebellion, Traumatized Midoriya Izuku, U.A. High School (My Hero Academia)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-17
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:08:23
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 33
Words: 336,846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27057730
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KrumbleKitty/pseuds/KrumbleKitty
Summary: Around the age of four, a child develops an element which appears as a mark on their body. At four, they bond with a Pokemon and that bond develops their quirk, superpowers that almost 80% of the human population have through this special relationship with Pokemon, typically bonding with a Pokemon of the same element. To not make a bond and develop a quirk, to not develop an element in the first place, well, it's unheard of!But not impossible. After all, that 20% has to hide in the shadows of the light somewhere.Midoriya Izuku had the perfect life for a toddler. He had a loving mother and a loving father who, sure, fought every once in a while but what family doesn't? It was perfect up until he turned four and Izuku did not develop an element and suddenly his fairy tale story took a turn for the worst.But hey, no family is perfect. Yelling and screaming is normal. Kicking and punching and beatings are normal. Crying and begging and breaking bottles are normal. Sure, he might not understand a lot of things but that's okay.Everything would be okay. Why? Because Mommy says so and Mommy never lies.
Relationships: Aizawa Shouta/Kayama Nemuri, Midoriya Hisashi/Midoriya Inko
Comments: 686
Kudos: 471





	1. Fairy Tale Beginnings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone? Welcome to the new fic! Welcome back if you are joining from my previous fanfictions.
> 
> This is a Crossover between Pokemon XY/XYZ and Boku no Hero Academia/My Hero Academia. It has pieces from both, such as the regions and places and a few of the authority structures are from the Pokemon Anime but a lot of it will focus on the BnHA plot. Some of the characters will be drawn from both as well.
> 
> Well... Enjoy!

“Mommy! Daddy!”

It was a well-known scene; that from story books and fairy tales. A young child trotting through a green meadow on a bright, sunny day to its parents. The sound of Fletchings chirping and Kicketots chirping, an undertone of sparkles and twinkling provided by the shining sun.

“There’s our little man!”

The laughter of a happy family echoed as they fell into the luscious grass in a fit giggles and faces lit up with smiles of joy.

\-----

_“I’m sorry, Mr. and Mrs. Midoriya, your son has no elemental power.”_

\-----

“Mommy? Daddy?”

It was a scene sadly familiar; the fragile fairy tale that shatters into reality. Warm eyes turn cold. Joyful smiles fall into grim frowns and scowls. Laughter dwindles to silence. Then whispers. Whispers grow to yelling, yelling to screaming, screaming to-

* **CRASH** *

A bottle is broken, a step is taken too far and yet the remorse from the one taken action is lost. “He’s just a child, Hisashi!” A child cowers in fear, eyes wide in shock as it stares at the form of its mother, hunched over his own small body protectively. The cruel eyes of the boy’s father glares at the boy through the gap in the woman’s arms. Green eyes flitter up to the woman’s head. A child watches as it’s mother bleeds.

She bleeds as crimson flows slowly,

slowly,

slowly, from her forehead.

She looks down at her son, hand combing through his hair. “Go to your room, Izuku,” she whispers. “Everything is okay.” She stands shakily and turns to her husband. The boy can only stare in fear until his mother, defiantly protecting him from his father, glaces over her shoulder at him and smiles. Behind her, the broken bottle in his father’s hand raises. The boy turns and flees.

* **CRASH** *

A scream. A slew of apologies. A slamming door. And then… silence.

Izuku waited and waited and waited but heard nothing. He opened his room door just a crack and looked out into the house’s hallway. He wiped his still-wet eyes and walked into the hallway carefully, wincing when he heard the floorboards creak underfoot. “M- Mommy?” Silence returned his call. “D- Daddy…” he hesitantly called again. He wandered in the house, checking each room, calling for his parents at each opened door.

_Did they leave me…?_

He started for the living room where he originally ran from to his room. It was eerily quiet in the house, as if it were waiting in anticipation for something. Izuku had felt this kind of tension before. This isn’t the first time his parents have fought. This is the first time one of them was hurt though.

He rounded into the living room and stopped stock still.

There was a puddle of blood on the floor, so ominous. It looked like the one’s Izuku would often jump in after a rainy day, sitting there, mocking his smiles, mocking his laughter, mocking the joy that is only found outside of the doors of this house. The curly, green-haired boy was only four but he knew what blood was. And he knew what it meant. Someone was hurt. The image of his smiling mother, bleeding from her head, flashes in his mind’s eye. Tears form in the corners of his green doe eyes. He falls to his knees before the puddle of his dear mother’s blood, wailing out for her like the toddler he is.

Hours pass and no one is home yet. Mommy is still gone and Daddy… Izuku shivers. He doesn’t know if he wants Daddy to return or not. He loves Daddy! He does! But Daddy is scary sometimes. When he yells at Izuku for not putting away his toys fast enough, when they eat a meal at the table together and no one is allowed to speak, and then today… Izuku has never seen Daddy do that before. He had never seen Daddy so angry.

Izuku doesn’t blame Daddy for being angry at him. After all, Izuku doesn’t have an element… He has no mark to prove it.

Around the age of four, a mark of the elements will form on a child’s body, sometimes two or three if they will grow to be really powerful. Izuku doesn’t have one… Kacchan got his yesterday. It was fire! A bright red flame on his shoulder. It looked so cool! Tsubasa got flying a- and everyone e- else had gotten theirs already s- so why when Izuku checks the m- mirror there is no element on his body? Why is heat not attracted to him? Why does the air not spin when he walks?

“Loom!”

Izuku jumps. Ah, right! He rushes out to their backyard. “Skiploom!” He looks to the side and sighs. “Again…?” He chuckles at the little green pokemon stuck in the bushes again and goes over to pull it out. Skippy was Mommy’s pokemon. They bonded even though Mommy’s element was psychic. It's rare but possible.

Izuku sat in the grass, holding the pokemon in his arms, rubbing the yellow petals. Skippy liked that. Tears filled his eyes again. “Sk- Skippy,” he cried, “I don’t have an e- element. D- do you think I Can bond w- with a pokemon too?” “Loom!” Izuku ducked his head.

“Do y- you think Daddy would l- love me if I had a pokemon too…?”

“Loom…”

Eventually, Izuku heard the front door open. He wanted to run inside, to make sure Mommy was okay, to run into Daddy’s arms and cry and for Daddy to call him his “little man” again but… he was scared. It was dark out already but he was more scared of what awaited him inside than the Zubats that swung through the air and hid under their awning at night.

“Izuku?”

He heard his mother’s call. Mommy was okay! Quickly, but still carefully, setting Skippy down, Izuku rushed inside. “Mommy!” He froze inside of the hallway. Daddy stormed by him. Black eyes glared at the little boy as the man passed sending ice down Izuku’s back. Izuku’s excitement was squashed in an instant. He much more quietly stalked through the hallway until he found his room, his mother outside of it. She turned and found him. “Oh, Izu!”

She whispers. She only whispers when Daddy is mad. Daddy is very mad.

Izuku’s face turned concerned as he approached her. She saw the way his face fell. “M- Mommy?” he asked. “Wh- what happened t- to your eye?” Mommy’s smile faltered. Over her left eye was gauze and bandages. She held out her arms. “Come here, sweetie,” she whispers again. Izuku hesitantly walks into his mother’s arms. She scoops him up and spins him around. The forestry boy giggles as he flies through the air before he is brought into a tight hug.

“I want you to know Daddy loves you very much, Izu,” Mommy says, opening his room door and entering. It is All Might themed. All Might, the number one hero, and his Pokemon Tyranitar. Mommy tucks him into bed and sits on the side. “He is just very stressed right now.” Izuku hugged his Tyranitar plushie. “M- Mommy… I- is it because I don’t have an element?” She pats his hair. “No, Izu, you are perfectly fine as you are.”

“What if I don’t bond with a pokemon next month?”

Izuku doesn’t miss the way Mommy’s hands tremble. “Oh, sweetie, don’t worry about that. I’m sure you will.” The four year old boy hung his head unbelieving. “B- but you have to have an element, Mommy… And i- if I don’t make a b- bond then I won’t get a q- quirk either… Right?” Izuku was brought into a hug. Cradled against his mother’s chest, he could feel it shake in fear with each of her breaths. “It will be okay, Izuku,” Mommy whispered. “You will be okay.” She rocked him back and forth.

“It will be okay. Everything will be okay. We will be okay.”

His four year old stamina ran out and he fell asleep to Mommy’s rambling.

“We will be okay. We will be… We will… It might… okay…”

So much changed over the course of that month.

Kacchan turned on Izuku. Not only that, he turned the other preschoolers against him too! Izuku couldn’t even play in the sand pit at recess anymore!

“Deku’s too weak,” they say.

“Deku’s just a big cry baby,” he hears.

“I- I’ll bond with a pokemon th- though!” he weakly fights back.

“You? What? With a Magikarp?” the laugh.

“No pokemon will want to bond with you,” they jeer.

“No- I- You don’t-”

At home, Daddy didn’t look at him anymore. There was no more going to the park or playing catch together. There was no more “little man.” Instead, the yelling in the house only increased. Louder and louder and louder and- _MAKE IT STOP!_ He would hide under his covers until Mommy came and knocked on his door. Mommy would always rock him to sleep, promising that it would be okay. Because it would, right? Izuku would bond with a pokemon. Izuku would bond with one at the center a- and when he did he would get a quirk. Like all kids! And when he got a quirk and when he got a pokemon Daddy would smile and call him “little man” again! A- and Kacchan would call him “Izu” again! And he could play trainers again at recess! Right!

Right?

Because it had to. It would happen. It would, it would, it would! Just like Mommy says every night. It will be okay. Everything will be okay…

“Okay, children, let’s get on the bus single file,” his preschool teacher said. “It’s time to go to the Pokemon Gardens! It will be quite the trip to Lumiose City so get settled.” Mommy and Daddy got in behind him. The parents always came because when a bond is made between pokemon and human and a quirk is developed in a child through this it is a very special moment.

Daddy came! Daddy was coming! This was perfect! Now Daddy could see Izuku make his bond and get a quirk despite not having an element and everything would go back to normal! Sure, you usually only made a bond with a pokemon who has the same element as you do b- but it should be okay. Mommy said so. Mommy never lies! A- and she said there was still a possibility for him to form a bond with a pokemon even without an element. Everything would be okay.

But… Daddy wouldn’t say anything the whole trip? Why was Daddy still mad at him? Mommy kept saying he loved Izuku. He was just stressed. But Daddy wasn’t doing anything right now, right? None of the other kids would talk to him anymore either so it was only him and Mommy and she didn’t say anything either but Izuku knew it was because she was protecting him from Daddy because maybe Daddy was stressed? Maybe big adult stuff was happening that Izuku didn’t know about?

Izuku shook his head. It would be fine! He was getting a pokemon and Daddy would talk to him again so… just a three hour trip from their small town of Vaniville, through Aquacorde Town and Santalune City, and into the big Lumiose City and everything would be okaaaaay.

“Woah… Mommy, do you see that?!” Izuku tugged on the woman’s hand, pointing to the building at the edge of the city, tall enough to be seen even though they were in the middle of it. “It’s UA! It’s UA!” he cheered. UA Trainer’s Academy, the most famous trainers academy in all of Kalos, maybe even the world! He turned around and gasped in awe because at the other end of the city he could see the Lumiose City Gym towering high into the skyline in an ‘A’ shape. “It’s so cool!” Mommy just giggled at his antics. Izuku instinctively turned to point them out again to his father but stopped short. The man was simply looking at his phone as if he didn’t care. Izuku lowered his eyes, squeezing Mommy’s hand just a bit tighter.

“Okay, children, let’s go to the Pokemon Gardens,” their teacher announced. “Stay with the group.”

The Pokemon Gardens, a place for domestic Pokemon to roam and usually get adopted by families. Inside it was beautiful. The dome was high for the flying type pokemon to fly and the lakes were deep for the water types. The grass was luscious and the caves were dark. It was amazing. It was located near the edge of Lumiose City. 

“Everyone say ‘hi’ to Nurse Joy!”

There was a collective course of hello’s to the pink-haired pokemon nurse. The woman smiled. “Good morning, children!” she greeted back. “Now, I know you are all very excited to meet your forever friend and make a bond with a pokemon but let me first explain some things you probably have not heard about yet. As you all know, each child gets their element at the age of four that corresponds to pokemon elements too. All of you have your markings, right?” The children all nodded, some flashing their marks, others who had them under their clothes having to be stopped by their parents. “Making a bond with a pokemon is a very special thing. It only happens once in a lifetime.”

“Oh! Oh! Oooooh! Nurse Joy!” one of the children waved their hand. “What about those who have more than one pokemon?!”

Nurse Joy smiled. “That is a great question! Yes, you can have more than one pokemon. You can catch them in the wild or buy one at the gardens but normally those with more than one are trainers. We all know what trainers are, right?”

The same kid spoke up again, the knowitall of the class. “Trainers are those kids who train with their pokemon to become heroes, right?” “Right! Aren’t you smart?” Everyone rolled their eyes when the kid puffed out his chest. “You will learn more about potentially being a trainer when you are just a bit older but most people grow up to become something other than trainers and they usually only have one pokemon which they bond with at a young age.” “Just like we will do today?” “Yup!” Nurse Joy smiled. “And do you know what happens when you bond with a pokemon?”

Kacchan raised his hand, not caring that it almost swatted Izuku in the face. “You get a quirk!”

Nurse Joy clapped her hands together. “Right! Your quirk usually corresponds with the pokemon you bond with and your and its element but you won’t notice it right away unless it is a physical change.” Kacchan smirked at the knowitall. “Those are called mutations,” Nurse Joy continued. “They aren’t as rare anymore nowadays but they used to be very rare. Remember, a bond can happen at any time, sometimes you won’t even expect it too, so be careful which you play with. Now, that is all I have to say for now and I just know you are all eager to get in and find your own pokemon but don’t forget, just because you are ‘buying’ a pokemon doesn’t mean they are any lesser than you. They have feelings and emotions too and feel pain just like you so you must treat them very kind-like. Okay?”

“Yes, Nurse Joy!” She led them into the main area, the plaza, where all of the Pokemon roamed to their limited free ability. “Because Lumiose City is the central head of Kalos we have more of a variety of pokemon here from other regions as well unlike the small cities in Kalos which only harbor Kalos region pokemon in their gardens. If you have any questions, come find me. I will be at the front. Now go get your pokemon!”

Izuku stepped forward but was pushed back by the hoard of his classmates running in and getting lost somewhere in the greenery.

Nurse Joy stopped and noticed him. She came over and knelt before him. “Hey there, kiddo,” her voice was sweet like honey. “Why aren’t you going in?” Izuku gripped the edges of his shirt. “I- I don’t have an element…” he whispered. The greenette didn’t dare look up. He didn’t want to see the same look Daddy had in such a kind lady’s eyes. Two hands gently held his. “That’s okay,” Nurse Joy said. Izuku snapped up his head. “Not everyone has one. You don’t need an element to bond with a pokemon so don’t worry about that. Just go out there and make a new friend, okay?” Izuku beamed. “Oka-”

“I’d appreciate it if you did not put such silly ideals into my son’s head.”

Izuku stopped, smile frozen on his face. “Hisashi,” Mommy hushed. Nurse Joy’s smile faltered, a deeper understanding than Izuku understood filtering into her gaze. She smiled sadly at the little boy before her. The squeeze she gave his hands was comforting before she stood. “Yes, my apologies, sir. He is your son after all. Little boy, you are free to roam the gardens.” Izuku bowed. “Th- thank you, ma’am.” He started for the garden like the other children.

“ **If you think you are going to come back without a pokemon or with a weak one,** ” Daddy’s voice cut through the tension, “ **don’t bother coming back at all.** ”

Tears filled Izuku’s eyes but he didn’t let them fall. Instead, he looked over his shoulder, ignoring the shocked stares from his teacher, Nurse Joy, and Mommy directed towards Daddy. Izuku gave a wobbly smile. “Y- yes, Daddy.” And he scampered off.

____________________________

Joy could not believe what she just heard and yet, sadly, she could.

It was all too common. She had seen many strict parents in her life. Many kids come in and out with a variety of backgrounds and pasts, some far too painful for a four year old to bear, minds not developed enough to understand what was happening. Power-hungry parents were angered by certain things. Many found faults in their child’s element as if the child could simply change it on command. Maybe it wasn’t the same as theirs, maybe their child was born with the element their element was weak against. Something they hated about their child and the poor kid’s could not understand their parent’s hatred towards them, minds too young, hearts too fragile. It was truly painful to see.

But to be born without an element?

Joy feared for that little boy. Her words were filler. It was actually very rare to bond with a pokemon without an element. Not impossible but the link was small. If that boy truly came back without bonding, what would his father do? Joy glances over at the couple. The mother looked angry but it seemed greatly repressed by the fear Joy saw in the little boy’s eyes. Joy’s blue eyes drifted to scar over the mother’s left eye. She was not one for speculation but the pokemon nurse had a feeling she knew an inkling of what was going on behind this family’s door and she did not like it.

Steeling herself, Joy walked over to the classes teacher. “Miss Watanabe, that child, the one with the curly green hair and freckles, what is his name?” “Who, that one?” the woman replied. Joy internally cringed at Watanabe’s tone. “Izuku Midoriya. He has no element so don’t expect too much from him.” Joy pursed her lips. She nodded before going back to her waiting position. Glancing around, she pulled out her phone.

If I’m not mistaken… my sister Hope works in the Vaniville Town Pokemon Center…

____________________________

Izuku couldn’t breathe. So he ran. Running made it harder but he just couldn’t stop. Tears trailed and disappeared into the artificial garden behind him. He ran until his little legs could not run anymore and instead he collapsed behind a tree in a fit of tears and hiccups. His tiny body shook with every breath he attempted to get. Something was wrong, he knew it was. He knew that he shouldn’t be reacting this way, that this paralyzing fear shouldn’t affect him like this. This was not normal and he knew it but he did not know how to stop it. He could not stop the way his lungs felt as though they were contracting and his stomach felt as though it was being spun into knots and his heart felt like it would beat, beat, BEAT right out of his chest! He did not know what it was and he did not know how to stop it. So he just cried, trying and failing to muffle his pain but he didn’t really care because all he needed was AIR!

Later, he would realize that this was called an anxiety attack and later he would realize this would not be his last one…

“ **Eevee?** ”

Izuku jumped, breath hitching once again. His head whipped left to right, spinning at the sudden movement paired with lack of oxygen to his brain. He tried to quiet himself but the little hiccups made it past his small hands. The bushes before him rustled. Izuku’s heart pounded with a different kind of fear this time. He pressed himself up against the tree, waiting in frightened anticipation until he saw them: two big eyes in the bushes. A small “Eep!” escaped from him.

Izuku covered his head with his arms, ducking behind his drawn-in knees. He heard the bushes rustle again and muffled footsteps coming his way. “Please don’t hurt me,” he whispered. “Please don’t hurt me, please don’t hurt me, please don’t hurt me!” The steps stopped. He jumped when fur brushed his arm but did not move.

* **Sniff Sniff** *

Izuku held his breath. He did not know if it was a Pokemon or not. It could just be another sick joke by one of his classmates. And if it was a pokemon it could be dangerous. So he waited. Maybe if he waited long enough it would go away, just like the yelling and screaming in his house. If he hid for long enough they would quiet and Mommy would come and sing to him and everything would be okay. But the screaming always returned, danger was never far away.

“Eevee!” Izuku jumped when a furry head nuzzled against his arms, wiggling its way under them and forcing his head to lift in shock and stretch his legs. He recoiled at the sudden presence of a pokemon in his arms. The small creature blinked up at him. It was… cute.

Like a little puppy, the pokemon was a caramel brown that stood on three short legs with a puffy tail. On the tip of the tail it was cream colored as well as the mass of fur around its neck. Long ears came forth from the top of its head and… weren’t Eevee supposed to have brown eyes? Izuku had seen pictures of Eevee before and he was certain that they did not have the rainbow tint to their eyes such as this one.

Izuku’s eyes drifted to the stump that was what was supposed to be the creature’s front right leg. He frowned.

“Are you hurt?” he asked. “A- are you hurt too?” As if it could understand him, the Eevee responded in a resounding, “Vee!” It pressed its face against his own wet cheeks as if it were trying to comfort him. Izuku couldn’t help himself. He pulled the small mammal closer, burying his face in its fur. It did not pull away, gratefully. These tears were normal, nothing like the painful, throat ripping, air stopping tears of before. He allowed himself to de-stress from his month of hurt. The Eevee settled against him as if finding comfort in the boy itself. A kindred heart? Maybe. Both wounded from two pasts they knew nothing about and yet finding relief in the other’s presence.

But anxiety attacks cause exhaustion and he could feel himself slipping from the waking world to the world of dreams. The landscape of smiles.

\-----

_‘Mommy! Daddy!’ the child laughed._

_‘There’s my little man!’_

\-----

His eyes shuttered close, content in only the presence of this creature he had just met. A child’s heart was gullible and easily swayed, too quick to trust; too quick to break.

* **ba** - **bump** *

Green eyes fluttered open.

* **ba** - **bump** *

* **ba** - **bump** *

The Eevee lifted its head. Green eyes met rainbow.

* **ba** - **bump** *

* **ba** - **bump** * 

* **ba** - **bump** *

* **ba** - **bump** * 

Izuku felt something in him tighten. It wasn’t the painful contraction of the lungs before. It was oddly light. A warm glow emitted from the boy’s chest forcing a small gasp from his lips. He looked up and found a similar glow coming from the chest of the Eevee. Unlike the plain light of his, the Eevee’s was full of rainbows. It was, simply put, breath-taking.

* **ba** - **bump** *

* **ba** - **bump** * 

He watched as the lights came together in a burst of color and light, warmth flying from its core.

* **BA** - **BUMP** *

All at once it was as though the air was sucked from the atmosphere around them. Izuku doubled over as a searing pain erupted from his chest. Tears pricked at his eyes. The Eevee yelped, jumping from his lap to the ground below. Light flooded his vision, almost blinding. He tried to cry out, to call for help, but no voice came from his chords. The pain did not last forever. In fact, it dwindled to something more calm, more kind, as if it belonged. The warmth encompassed his entire body. Izuku sat up and looked down. Through his blue uniform dress he witnessed a small glow. He pulled the collar of his shirt and peeked in just in time to see the glow dying. Left in its place was a mark that was not there before.

When a human child turns four years of age they develop an element. With this element comes a mark somewhere on their body. When a child makes a bond with a pokemon, their element brand changes; it shifts to mimic the silhouette of the pokemon they bonded with in the style of their element. If one were to have the fire element and bond with a Fletching it would be a flame in the shape of said pokemon and this brand will shift every time the pokemon evolves.

But Izuku does not have an element. Izuku does not have a brand.

Squarely in the middle of his chest, Izuku saw it. It was the outline of the face of an Eevee. There was no elemental shape, it was not red like fire or blue like water. It was just black, almost like a Dark Type but it sparkled almost in the light and two rainbow slits emitted from its face as eyes. Peculiar.

Black is the color for the dark element but it was not faded as if it were that element and Izuku is sure neither he nor the Eevee was of that element. He had the medical records to prove it so what was this then and why was it so different from the brands he had seen before?

“Eevee?”

Izuku snapped his head up. He was going to get whiplash at this rate. The Eevee blinked at him, head tilted as if it were concerned. He swallowed thickly. He bonded… He bonded! He wanted to smile and cheer and run to Mommy and Daddy and say ‘Look, Daddy! Your little man bonded!’ But he couldn’t. He wrung his hands together, looking more nervous than elated. What if the Eevee didn’t mean to bond with him? What if it didn’t want to? He couldn’t take it from its home if it didn’t want to come. What would he do then?! He could not bond with another pokemon now and Daddy would be so mad if he came back without one. If Izuku lied and said he didn’t bond but then he developed a quirk Daddy would be mad that he lied a- and the screaming would come back a- again and Izuku didn’t want the screaming to come back again s- so he would have to hide his quirk but if he h- hid his quirk than the other kids would push him away again and-

“Vee!”

Izuku was shaken from his musings. The Eevee walked up to him and balanced up on its hind legs to press its singular front paw against his chest, right where the brand was. It stared Izuku in the eyes. The world slowed around them, nothing but the elementless boy and three-legged pokemon. There were no sounds of flapping wings or cheering preschoolers or blowing leafs. It was Izuku and Eevee. He took a deep breath.

“Y- you and I bonded…” he spoke quietly. “I d- don’t know you and you don’t know me b- but… you helped me when I was sad… A- and you are hurt to… We could… be hurt together?” He offered a small smile. “W- would you like to come home with me?”

Almost instantly the Eevee dropped its paw, falling full force into his chest. It rubbed against him. “Vee! Eevee!” Tears filled Izuku’s eyes for the umpteenth time today. He stood sharply and spun around with the Eevee in his arms. “Yay!” He brought it tightly to his chest, burying his face in its neck fur.

“Thank you…” he whispered. Now Daddy would smile at him. Now Daddy would play catch with him again and call him ‘little man’ again. Now the screaming would stop and the bottles would go away and that awful stench would disappear. Daddy would stop hitting Mommy now and they would be in love again just like they should be. Izuku couldn’t help but shed a few tears of joy. Everything would go back to normal again.

A child's heart is naive.

Izuku wiped his eyes and let the Eevee go. It ran around in circles. Izuku adored its little hobble on its three legs. He giggled and crouched close to the ground. “S- so what should I call you, Eevee? Or do you just want to be called Eevee?” He bit his lip. “B- but what if there is another Eevee called Eevee and then we get our Eevee’s mixed up a- and then- and then you don’t come home with me and we get separated and never see each other again and I actually have some Eevee named Bob at home a-”

“Vee…”

Izuku blushed at his own ramblings. “S- sorry…”

“Izuku?” Izuku jumped, spinning around. He looked up at Nurse Joy, her face soft with a smile. “Your teacher has called for everyone to come back.” Izuku’s eyes widened. He meant to look down at his plastic All Might watch but he forgot he had taken it off. His classmates broke his figurine already. He didn’t want that broken too. The nurse giggled at his mistake and offered a hand. “Let’s go together, okay?”

Her voice was nice. It held a kindness he never heard before. Mommy’s was nice too but her voice was always desperate, for what he did not know. Daddy’s… used to be kind. Now he didn’t know what it sounded like hardly anymore. Izuku missed Daddy’s kind voice. But it would come back! Izuku had an Eevee! He accepted the woman’s hand and she held it through the garden. “I see you found Eevee,” she mentioned. Izuku looked to his side. Eevee was hobbling beside him. It was actually coming! He smiled up at Nurse Joy. “That one is a special one,” she said. “Did you bond?” Izuku nodded furiously. “Y- yeah!” “That’s great!” She sounded relieved? But also worried. The nurse stopped and turned to him. “May I see your bond mark?” Izuku titled his head. “Yes…?” He didn’t want her to be mad at him, not after how nice she was being, so he pulled forward his shirt collar so she could see the mark.

Nurse Joy’s face was still, not letting anything through. She blinked as if she forgot what she was doing. “W- wow! That’s an amazing bond mark, Izuku!” she exclaimed. Something was different about her voice though. It shook like Mommy’s does when she visits him after the screaming stops. “I am very proud of you. Let’s go back to your class.” Izuku nodded and followed, hand in hers again.

Excitement bubbled in Izuku’s chest once again, the awkwardness now long forgotten. Everyone would know that he wasn’t useless or weak now! He was just like everyone else. And he would get a quirk! He would because he bonded because that was how it worked! So there has never been an elementless person with a quirk regardless or not if they bonded with a pokemon but the population of elementless people was, like, super duper low and their teacher couldn’t know every single elementless person, no matter how smart Ms. W is! Everyone will play with him again and Kacchan would want to have a sleepover with him again too. Everything was going to be perfect. Izuku was practically jumping out of his body.

Soon enough, he saw his class through the tree line. He did not wait for Nurse Joy. No, he ran ahead happily. “I- I bonded!” he announced happily. Looking around, Izuku saw all of the other kids had bonded as well. Tsubasa even had wings! He was crying though. If his experience was anything like Izuku’s then it must have hurt, especially suddenly sprouting wings. It was, like, human evolution? Like pokemon do? Izuku ran up to his blonde friend.

“Kacchan, Kacchan! I bonded!” he exclaimed. “Ha…?” Kacchan turned around with an unbelieving eyebrow raised. In his arms was-

“Wow!” Izuku cheered. “You bonded with a Cyndaquil? Th- that pokemon is from all the way in Johto! That’s so cool, Ka-” “You bonded?” the red-eyed boy laughed. “Yeah right!”

_Huh…?_

All of the children turned his way. “What?” “Deku bonded?” “No way!”

_Wait…_ This wasn’t how this was supposed to go.

“My mommy says that you are supposed to lie,” a little girl said. Izuku’s eyes widened. “I- I’m not! I’ve g- g- got the mark to-” “Deku’s trying to steal a pokemon!” a kid yelled. “N- no I’m not!” Izuku’s pleas went uncared for. It soon became prevalent that his classmates didn’t care whether or not he bonded really. They all spouted out whatever four year old lies they could as they smirked at him. They knew what they were doing. They just didn’t care.

The picture perfect scene he had imagined was falling apart. This couldn’t happen.

Izuku ran to his parents. “M- Mommy! I did! I- I promise I did!” She knelt beside him. “I believe you, sweetie.” Izuku smiled. That’s right. That’s how it is supposed to go. He looked up. “Daddy, I-” Cold eyes stared, not at Izuku, but at the Eevee behind him. Disgust flurried in those black pupils. “D- Daddy, I-”

“Are you trying to bring my family’s name shame?” Daddy hissed.

Izuku’s face fell. _No. No! This isn’t how this is supposed to go! Why is Daddy still mad at me? What did I do wrong? I got a pokemon. I bonded! Why does no one believe me? What am I supposed to do? Daddy, look at me! Smile. Call me your “little man.” Tell me that you are proud of me again. Let’s go to the park and play catch again. Why can’t we play catch?! What am I doing wrong? I’ll do better! I promise!_

“Okay, children, let’s settle down,” Nurse Joy clapped her hands. Izuku’s wide eyes met hers. She gave a small, almost undetectable pity smile to him. “We have a couple more things that we need to take care of before you can take your pokemon home.” The class booed. “We already bonded,” Kacchan griped. “What more is there to do?” “Well, for one,” the pinkette said, “you need to actually catch them.” A few kids snickered. Kacchan blushed. “I- I knew that.”

They were each given a pokeball. It was a small round capsule, red on the top and white on the bottom with a black seal and a white button in the middle. A pokeball was typically thrown at a wild pokemon to catch it, usually by a trainer or hero. It was different than bonding but you still had to catch your bonded pokemon if you wanted to keep your pokemon. Izuku held the ball in his hands. Daddy glared at him from above, not even trying to hide his distaste. “Are you really going to take that thing?” the man questioned. “Hisashi, please,” Mommy whispered.

Did it really matter anymore? Even when he did everything right, Daddy still hated him. Kacchan still hated him too. Tears filled his eyes, lip trembling. “Vee?” Eevee nuzzled his leg. He couldn’t bond with any other pokemon so at this point no matter what he did Daddy would not like it. But Mommy… She knelt down and pet the small, brown creature. “Izu,” she said sweetly, “it is okay. A bond is a very special thing. If this is the pokemon you bonded with, Eevee is welcomed in our family.” Daddy huffed but Izuku ignored it. Mommy’s smile was all that mattered. She believed him. She still loved him. Her and… Nurse Joy was nice to him. They said it was okay so… Izuku looked down at Eevee. “W- will you become my p- pokemon?” he asked, hesitantly holding out the ball. He squeezed his eyes shut, not wanting to see what would happen. There was a flash of light behind his eyelids. He felt the ball in his hands shake.

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

* **doot** **doot** *

Izuku opened his eyes. Eevee was gone and… he looked at the ball. He watched as the white button in the middle tinted over with a rainbow tint. Was it supposed to do that? Mommy’s pokeball for Skippy looks normal. Izuku shrugged. That didn’t matter. He had an Eevee now and that was all that mattered. Izuku beamed up at his mother. “Good job, Izu! I am so proud of you.” His eyes sparkled. Mommy is proud of me! I did good! He looked around and saw everyone else taking their pokemon out of their pokeballs. Izuku grinned and did the same. Eevee leapt out with a happy: “Eevee!” Izuku laughed as it jumped into his arms.

How could Daddy not love this cute pokemon? He was sure everything would work out. Because it had to, right? Right.

After filling out paperwork, Eevee had to go back in its ball for the bus trip back. Izuku was scared for a second there. Daddy refused to go fill out the paperwork no matter what. Mommy ended up signing something called a “check” and using that to pay for Izuku’s pokemon. He didn’t know what that was. Weren’t adults supposed to pay with coins and dollars like the quarter he gets if he cleans his room? Adults were weird.

“Izuku,” Nurse Joy stopped him before he got onto the bus and took him aside. “I have a sister in Vaniville Town, she is the nurse in your Pokemon Center.” Izuku thought for a moment. He remembers going to their small center when Skippy got hurt. There was someone very similar to Nurse Joy but her pink, loopy hair was light blue. Her name was… “N- Nurse Hope?” Nurse Joy nodded. “Yup! That’s her! If you ever need anything or some place to go, you can go to her.” Izuku furrowed his eyebrows. Why would he need anything? Everything was okay, or, well, it would be. He was sure of it. Mommy said so! Still, Izuku knew his manners, yes he did, and he bowed to the nice lady. “Thank you, N- Nurse Joy.” He waved and hopped on the bus after Mommy.

Izuku all but passed out on the bus. Who knew crying so much would be so draining?

The ball shrunk to pocket size, a special carrying setting, but Izuku cradled it in his hands on the way home. He couldn’t believe it! He had an Eevee! What should he name it? He really should stop calling it ‘it.’ It had a gender after all but he couldn’t very well call it a ‘him’ or ‘her’ without knowing. That would just be ingn- ignara- ignorance? Mommy said that it meant not knowing something but on purpose just because you didn’t want to know the truth which Izuku thought was dumb. How would he even ask? More so, how would Eevee reply? Izuku looked up when he heard the house door open. He couldn’t wait to show Eevee his room! Izuku skipped in happily. He spun around. “Can Eevee sleep in my room? Pleeeaaaseee?” Daddy brushed right past him. Izuku was used to it. That didn’t mean that it didn’t hurt any less. Mommy crouched by him. “Of course, Izu. Tomorrow, how about you and me go and get a bed for Eevee too and some supplies so we can take care of it?” “Will Daddy come?” Mommy’s eyes went dark, a strained smile on her face. “Daddy is… really busy, Izuku. I’m sure he would love to but I don’t think he can make it.” Izuku looked down. “Okay…”

“Inko.”

Mommy froze at Daddy’s voice. She gripped his hands a bit too tight. “Izuku,” she hushed. Izuku nodded. He let her press a kiss to his forehead before he ran to his room. Izuku spun around and grabbed the door. He caught a glimpse of Daddy though, just through the crack before he completely closed it, hand reaching out for him, black eyes gleaming with something scary that Izuku could not describe. He slammed the door just before Daddy’s hand could get in and locked it with a solid * **click** *. He stumbled back, heart hammering in his chest. Footsteps stormed past his door. Izuku ran to his bed, bag dropping on his floor, and pulled his All Might blanket over him. It wasn’t long until the yelling started.

There weren’t even any bottles this time! Why can’t Mommy and Daddy just get along?

Izuku peaked out from under his covers at the pokeball discarded on the floor. He frowned. He felt bad. Eevee had to live in this house now too and listen to this as well. It probably would be happier somewhere else. The Pokemon Gardens were so pretty. It probably liked living there and Izuku stole that from it. He crawled out from under his blankets and reached down to pick it up. Pressing the button, it enlarged in size.

How did Nurse Joy do it with Wigglytuff again?

He pressed the button. Izuku almost shrieked when the ball opened in a flash of light. He scrambled to catch it as it closed and fell from the air. Eevee jumped from the light with a loud, “Vee!”

The yelling stopped.

Izuku dropped the ball and held a finger to his lips. “Shhh… Mommy and Daddy will hear you,” he whispered. He pat the side of the bed. Using the same step stool Izuku uses to get into his bed, the Eevee bounded up. He opened his mouth to speak but clamped it shut when a door somewhere in the house. He grabbed Eevee and curled back up under the blankets. “Daddy is mad right now so we need to be quiet,” he said quietly. Izuku held his breath. There was yelling again but it was only one voice, muffled through multiple doors and distance. It sounded like Mommy. She was banging on a door.

* **knock knock knock** *

Wait, wasn’t it? Mommy always knocks on his door after the yelling. Was it Daddy? For the first time Izuku did not want to open his door and let whoever it was in. There was some sort of innate feeling of danger he felt on the other side of that door.

“Hey, little man,” it was Daddy’s voice.

\-----

_‘There’s my little man!’_

\-----

Izuku’s eyes widened. He scrambled out of bed, Mommy’s cries and desperate pleas falling into the background. Daddy was talking to him. Daddy was talking to him! He ran to his door but something pulled on his school dress. He looked down. Eevee had his dress in its mouth, pulling against him. “Ee… vee…? What's wrong?”

“Izuku?” Daddy called again. Izuku frowned and pulled against Eevee’s pull. Unstable with only one front leg, Eevee yelped and let go, falling to the floor. Izuku ran to his door. He unlocked it and swung it open. “Daddy!” The man smiled but it was… off. Behind him stood Smokey, Daddy’s Houndoom. Izuku hasn’t seen Smokey in a while, usually kept in its ball. Smokey scared Izuku, towering high over him. “Wh- where is Mommy?” Daddy shook his head. “Mommy isn’t feeling well right now, Izu. Come on, I have something to show you, a prize for you getting a pokemon.” Izuku’s eyes widened. A prize! “Oh,” Daddy mused, “and make sure you bring… it with you.” Izuku’s smile fell. What… what was that? But Daddy’s smile returned and Izuku had not seen that smile directed towards him in so, so long. He couldn’t let it go away!

“Come on, Eevee!” he cheered, following Daddy and Houndoom down the hallway. He did not see Eevee look back at his room and reluctantly follow. They passed by Mommy’s and Daddy’s room.

“Izuku…?” He stopped at Mommy’s voice through the door. Daddy stopped too. “Come on, Izuku,” he said, a bit more stern now. “Izuku, listen to me,” Mommy sounded so desperate. “Don’t go with him. Daddy isn’t thinking right right now.” Izuku bit his lip. “B- But I,”

“Izuku,” Daddy growled, “come. Now.”

The greenette swallowed. “Don’t go, sweetie,” Mommy’s voice got frantic. “Trust me! Don’t go!” The little boy stumbled back from the door. He glanced nervously at Daddy, torn before the two. Daddy huffed. He stormed over and grabbed Izuku’s arm. “I said, ‘Come.’ Smokey, get the brats pokemon.” Eevee yelped as it was picked up by its scruff between Smokey’s jaw. Izuku stumbled behind Daddy as the man pulled him.

“D- Daddy! I- It hurts!” he wailed. He could feel the bruise forming on his arm from Daddy’s grip. The closet was opened. Izuku was never allowed in here before. Daddy kicked a box to the side and what was underneath could only be described as a metal trap door.

_I’m scared! I don’t want to go in!_ Daddy pulled open the top revealing a staircase to the basement Izuku didn’t know they had. _Why is Daddy doing this? What’s going on?!_

\-----

_‘Don’t go with him. Daddy isn’t thinking right right now.’_

\-----

_Mommy…_

Daddy held him at the edge of the stairs. Tears flooded his vision.

_I don’t want to go!_

* **Kick** *

Izuku screamed as he fell down the stairs. It hurt, every time he hit a corner, hit the railing, and then finally when he crashed into the cement ground. Eevee came tumbling down soon after. The world spun. His head pounded something painful. He struggled to get to his feet, body protesting. He heard the metal of the trap door closing.

* **step** * * **step** * * **step** *

It was like a scene from the horror movie. A tall, looming figure with a monster coming down a dark tunneldown to where the child at the bottom cowered in fear and pain.

“D- Daddy?”

“You,” smoke puffed from Daddy’s mouth, “elementless, quirkless, illegitimate brat. I know you can’t be my child. Never took Inko for a whore but here you are.” Izuku didn’t understand. What did that mean? What was Daddy doing? “Fine, if you are going to hold my last name then you are going to earn your keep.” He flipped on the lights. Izuku looked around and saw all sorts of training equipment. “I refuse to allow you to bring shame to the Midoriya name. You want to be a trainer, right? You want to be a hero?” The man crouched before his trembling son, the boy too petrified to move, to speak. “Fine. I’ll show you what it means to be a hero.” He grabbed Izuku’s green locks so tightly Izuku thought his hair would tear right out from his head. Daddy smirked.

“Let’s get to work, _‘little man.’_ ”

____________________________

* **thud** *

Inko’s forehead hit the wooden door to her bedroom as she slumped to the floor. His arms couldn’t move anymore, her hands were twitching in pain, her head hurt something awful, and she could barely see from her one good eye now it was so puffy from tears. All this and the door had yet to give way. She had tried so hard, so hard! So hard to keep Izuku safe… She could only imagine what was happening in the basement. She knew Hisashi had anger issues, she is married to the man after all, but that was what the basement was for. He had a personal gym almost down there to blow off steam. Hisashi promised when he got married that he would never turn against her. Sure, he had slapped her once or twice when they were dating and during the first year of marriage but that was all. And when she revealed her pregnancy Hisashi stopped that altogether. For five good years! And yet… And yet now this happened? What happened to her good Hisashi? Her happy, sweet, loving Hisashi? What happened to the Hisashi who would randomly appear at her university with flowers even though he attended another one? The one who gave her chocolates when she was suffering during her monthly cycle?

To the Hisashi who said the words ‘Till death do us part’ at the alter…?

Surely he couldn’t believe she cheated on him? Inko was so confused. Did it really matter that much that Izuku didn’t have an element? Truly? He bonded, didn’t he?! ]

Inko wiped her eyes. Why was this happening? She had to do something but… what? She thought that she could wait it out. That if Izuku bonded Hisashi would go back to normal. She could handle the beatings and she supposes permanent blindness in her left eye would not be too bad. She could handle it for Izuku for the month but now he bonded and Hisashi… Hisashi got worse!

Inko felt something she has only felt once in her life towards her husband. When they were dating she only felt it once when Hisashi cheated on her. Fury.

Then she forgave him but she could not forgive him for this! Whether he believes it or not, Izuku is their child and he is doing who knows what to that little boy! If Hisashi thinks that she will just laugh it off like she did in the past then she has another thing coming for him. Inko will protect her son! She planted her hands on the floor and pushed herself up, ignoring the bone-deep aching in her body. She took a few steps back and ran. * **BANG** * Inko stumbled back. Her shoulder protested her attempt to bodyslam the door loudly. Inko glared at the door. One more time! * **BANG** * One more- * **BANG** * -time! One. More. TIME! She ran…

And hit nothing.

Inko fell forward, as if through the door and rolled onto the floor in a perfect face plant, panting heavily. She looked up. Hisashi glared down at her. Inko scrambled to her feet, noticeably shorter than the man. She gripped his shirt. “What did you do to him?” she hissed. Hisashi grabbed her wrists. She yelped at the tightness of her grip. He leaned down to meet her eye to eye. “Nothing, my love,” he smirked before blowing a cloud of smoke in her face and letting her go. Inko coughed violently into her sleeve. “I- * **cough** * I’ll call the police! * **cough** *” she hacked out. Hisashi smirked. “Oh? I don’t think you will.” Inko felt shivers go up her spine. She wearily glanced up at her husband for answers. Hisashi walked into their room, hand on the knob, he looked back at her.

“Unless you want me to do worse.”

Inko bit her tongue. Hisashi smirk grew to a malicious grin. “Now, I’m tired. I was busy training our precious son, you know, being the good father I am to our boy who wants oh so badly to be a hero, so I am going to go take a nap. Smokey will take you to the basement to retrieve Izuku.” Hisashi frowned in mock sadness and pity. “Poor boy was so tuckered out from his first day of training. He needs his nap too. After that, Smokey will take you to Izuku’s room. We will move your stuff there later.”

Inko blinked. “Wha…?”

“Oh course, you will be sleeping in his room!” Hisashi stated as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. “After all, I don’t want a whore in my bed.” He stormed towards her and grabbed her harshly by the chin, forcing Inko on her toes to meet his eyes. Terror surged through her. “Just how many other men did you bring in here, Inko? How many men did you tarnish our sheets with?” He practically threw her to the side. Inko gasped as she hit the wall. She rubbed her face. “We will fix that. I’ll come for you when I wake up, mk? And don’t think about escaping. I had Izuku’s windows barred while we were gone and Smokey will be guarding his door.”

As if to pour salt in the wound, Hisashi leaned down and placed an almost soft kiss to her lips. He leaned back and smiled.

“Love you, Inko.”

* **SLAM** * Inko could only stare in shock as the door to her once bedroom closed behind him, frozen in petrified form. “Doom!” She jumped and whipped around. Smokey, Hisashi’s Houndoom, was just a bit shorter than her. It looked almost… apologetic. Inko reached forward with shaky hands. Her depth perception was a bit off with only one eye but she made sure to get it right. She caressed Smokey’s face. “You don’t want to do this?” Smokey whimpered a bit. Inko frowned. “Has he been hurting you too? How long?” Smokey shook his head. Inko ran her hands along its long horns, knowing that Smokey liked it. “It’s okay. You will get hurt if you don’t do this, won’t you? And you can’t escape because Hisashi has your pokeball?” Smokey nodded. Inko nodded sharply. “That’s okay. Don’t worry about me and Izuku. I’m Izuku’s mother, it’s my job to take care of him. You watch over yourself.” Smokey gave a small bark before crouching down. Inko smiled and climbed onto its back.

She was carried to the closet where the entrance to the basement was. Smokey was only about halfway down when she saw Izuku. She gasped and practically threw herself off of the startled pokemon. Inko almost fell down the stairs she was skipping so many steps. “Izuku!” She fell to the floor beside the boy. Tears instantly filled her eyes once again.

Izuku… her poor baby.

Izuku was unconscious. His blue preschool dress was burnt at the bottom and the right shoulder of it had been burnt clean off. Smoke and dust blackened his skin almost to no clean skin to be seen. Sweat and dirt caked his hair, matting it to his head. He was shaking and panting and coughing weakly all at the same time, smoke inhalation and exhaustion probably. Beside him was oh… the poor Eevee they brought home. It’s fur was singed, almost as black as Smokey’s. Both probably had excruciating burns.

Inko sniffed. Smokey carefully wiped her eyes with his paw. The woman tried her best to muster a smile but it fell short. She tried to be careful getting her tired arms under her son but he still moaned in pain at the movement and touch. Smokey carefully picked up Eevee by its scruff and placed it on his back. Inko once again climbed onto Smokey’s back and let it take her to Izuku’s room.

She laughed dryly at the singular first aid kit and small bowl of water in the middle of the child’s room. As if that would be enough for this extent of wounds.

“Thank you, Smokey,” she whispered. She carefully laid Izuku on the blanket the large dog pokemon had pulled from the boy’s bed to the floor. “You can go. I don’t want you getting hurt too.” “Doom…” Smokey whined. She ran her hands along his horns. “It’s okay. We will be okay.” Smokey placed Eevee beside Izuku before nuzzling her and leaving the room. Inko watched him sit right outside of the door. She offered a shaky smile before closing the door. She did not bother locking it, it would only anger Hisashi more if she tried and he wanted in.

Every time Izuku cried out in pain, every time Eevee whined, Inko felt like crying but she wouldn’t allow herself to.

This was all her fault, she had no right to cry. She should have seen the signs when she and Hisashi were dating. Every time he showed up with flowers after cheating on her again. Every time he brought chocolates for hitting her or the week after Valentine’s day. When he showed up late for their wedding. When he came home smelling like some strange perfume. How could Inko let this happen?

She didn’t even notice she was crying until a drop hit her hand. “H- huh?” She wiped her eyes. “I-” She wiped again. They wouldn’t stop! Inko wiped and wiped frantically. She had no right! “St- stop!” Inko couldn’t though. She couldn’t stop the cascade of tears from pouring forth from her green eyes. She heard Smokey whine outside of the door. She heard Izuku shift. She could not stop.

Inko jumped when a small hand grabbed hers. She looked down, sniffling. Izuku’s green eyes gazed tiredly up at her. He lifted his hand and brought it down. * **pat** * * **pat** * * **pat** * Pain glazed his features as he forced a smile on his tiny face. “I- it’s okay, Mo-mmy-” he croaked, coughing harshly. “It’s ok-ay.” Inko sniffed. She wiped her eyes and carefully scooped her son and his pokemon in her arms.

“You are right,” she whispered, rocking back and forth in the glow of his All Might lamp. “Everything will be okay.”

____________________________

It will be okay. Everything will be okay. We’ll be okay.

Except it wasn’t.

You see, under every unturned stone there is a dark spot and in those dark spots are the few who slipped in between the cracks of society, those who were forgotten, and those to never see the light again. The unturned stone was too great a mass to be flipped, too crushing a pain to be bothered with and so those who are stuck in the shade of that stone are forever to stay.

But don’t worry. It would be okay.

Mommy says so and Mommy never lies.

____________________________

**Joy** :

Hope, you work in Vaniville, right?

**Hope** :

Yup!

Why?

**Joy** :

I have a favor to ask of you. A little boy bonded with that Eevee and something tells me he doesn’t have the best home life. I need you to make sure nothing happens.

…

**Hope** :

Ok.

I understand.


	2. It's Not Stealing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku and Inko have to find ways to survive in their situation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone?

“Mommy?”

“Hmm?”

“I’m hungry.”

“I know. Daddy will feed us soon.”

“It’s been two days.”

“He always feeds us on the second day. Don’t worry. Everything will be okay.”

“Mommy?”

“Hmm?”

“I love you.”

“I love you too, Izuku.”

…

…

…

“Mommy?”

“Hmm?”

“I’m hungry.”

“I know… Daddy will surely feed us soon.”

“It’s been three days.”

“I know…”

“It hurts, Mommy.”

“I know… everything will be okay.”

“Mommy?”

“Hmm?”

“I love you.”

“I love you too, Izuku.”

…

…

…

“Mommy…?”

\-----

* **creeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaak** *

The two froze as the bed creaked loudly beneath their weight. Their hearts beat rapidly in their chests, waiting in anticipation of the worse. They waited and waited and waited until they heard the almost inaudible, “Houndoom” from Smokey on the other side of Izuku’s door giving them the go ahead. Both let out a breath of relief. With determination in their hearts and hunger in their stomachs, they continued their endeavor.

“Can you do it?” Mommy asks.

Izuku grunted as he wiggled his way through the bars over his window. Six years old, he should not be small enough to do this but Daddy doesn’t feed him and Mommy often and he forgot to today and yesterday. He always does at least every other day but it’s almost been four whole days! Daddy wouldn’t allow him to pack a lunchbox before school or eat when he got home or anything! He would just take him down to ‘train’ and then lock him in his and Mommy’s room. Izuku had to go out and get food. It doesn’t matter how, Mommy says, just get food.

* **POP** *

Izuku almost screeched as he slipped out of the bars. “Eevee!” Chip grabbed his pant leg in his mouth. Too bad that he slipped and they both ended up falling into the bushes below. Mommy looked over her shoulder at the door frantically. Izuku held his breath, eye squeezed shut. Nothing happened. Mommy looked back down at him. “Are you two okay?” Mommy whispered. Izuku glanced up at her as she peered through the bars. He smiled and gave her a salute. She smiled. “Okay, Daddy should be asleep for a couple of hours. Be back by then.” “Right!” He whispered and brushed himself off, wincing as he brushed over the bandages under his black hoodie. He knelt down and held open his hoodie pocket. “Come on, Chip!” “Vee!” He scrambled into the hoodie pocket.

Vaniville Town is very small and, well, an elementless boy and three legged Eevee? Yeah, kind of recognizable as everyone knows everyone here. Daddy would actually kill him if he found out Izuku was doing this and Izuku could not let that happen so he had to be fast!

But first…

Izuku ran down the dirt roads with his hood up all the way through the windy town to the brown cabin with a pink painted roof and a big red cross above the door of it: The Vaniville Town Pokemon Center. He burst through the front door.

____________________________

“Nurse Hope! Wigglytuff!”

Now, on any other occasion, when the pinkette hears her name yelled at the front of the Vaniville Town Pokemon Center she and Wigglytuff would come rushing out of the back in a frantic rush. However! Hope knew that voice. She poked her head out of the back room to see a blob of curly green locks bounce her way. She smiled to herself and crouched. “Hey there, Izuku!”

Izuku Midoriya, six years old without an element. When Hope first received the text from her sister Joy, in Lumiose City, two years ago she didn’t know what to think. She was worried, to say the least. Of course, Izuku didn’t know how dangerous that Eevee was. She tries to look on the bright side of things. Maybe it would be fine, nothing has happened in these two years. Maybe not.

Hope had little hope for everything to turn out peachy keen. Speaking of which…

“Where’s Chip?” she asked. Izuku blinked. He bent sideways and pulled taunt his hoodie pocket, peering in. “Chiiiiip! Wakey, wakey!” Rainbow eyes flashed, glowing for a split second in the dark before the pokemon jumped out of his hoodie pocket. “Eevee vee!” Hope giggled, petting him. “Good evening to you too, Chip.” She forced the corners of her mouth to stay up as her arm tingles from the contact between them. Izuku looked up at her with big, pleading eyes. “Can we help today? Can we? Pleeeaaaseee?!” Hope tapped her chin in fake contemplation. But really, who could say no to those eyes? “Oh, I suppose,” she relented. Izuku jumped, punching the air victoriously. “Yay!” “Vee!” He landed on his foot and immediately let out a pained gasp, flinching and lifting his foot. He practically slammed it down right after, biting his tongue to hide his pain and looking down as if he had just done something wrong. “Izuku? Are you okay?” she played ignorant. His head snapped up, pain lacing his face. “I- it’s nothing!” he promised but it sounded more like a beg for her not to question further.

And she didn’t. She couldn’t. As much as Hope wished she could, she can not force the boy’s hand. Anyone else? Maybe. This child though… Hope knew something at his home was wrong, probably abusive but she had no proof. The last time she pressed about it he ran away and didn’t come back to the center for two months. She had to wait for Izuku to come to her first.

“Alrighty!” she clapped her hands together. “Let’s get going then, shall we?” As Hope led Izuku and Chip to the backyard behind the center, she was too busy focusing on Izuku’s too well hidden and practiced limp to see the door frame meet her foot.

* **BANG** *

Hope lept back. “Dangnabbit!” she yelled loudly before slapping her hands over her face, blushing. She turned to Izuku and her heart dropped. His eyes, wide, petrified. His hands, out from his body, preparing to defend himself. Chip cowered between the small boy’s legs, eyes narrowed, teeth bared.

Hope scratched the back of her head sheepishly. “Sorry! That wasn’t very ladylike of me now was it?” The greenette’s movements were stiff and he seemed to actively be forcing himself to relax. He mimicked her movements. “D- don’t worry!” he chirped. “D- Daddy says badder words anyway!” Hope bit her tongue. “But Mommy says I shouldn’t say bad words.” Taking a deep breath, Hope nodded. “She is right! Don’t copy what me and your father says, k?” Izuku nodded. “Yes, ma’am!” The nurse smiled. “Okay, let’s get to work. We have a Fletchling who needs its wing patched up. How long do you have?” Izuku looked out of the window at the setting sun. “Erm… thirty minutes?” Hope nodded. So twenty just in case. “Let’s go!”

…

“Cream.” “Cream.” “Vee.”

…

“Splint.” “?” … “Sticks.” “Sticks.” “Vee.”

…

“Bandages.” “Bandages.” “Eevee.”

…

“And… Done!” Hope exaggeratedly threw her hands up. “There!” Izuku copied her. “Eevee!” She held the Fletchling up to Wigglytuff. “Can you take him to rest?” “Tuff.” “Thanks.” Hope watched the two pokemon disappear inside before turning to those beside her. “Great job, you two. I couldn’t have done it without you.” They beamed at her.

* **beepbeepbeep** **beepbeepbeep** **beepbe** -*

“Oh? That’s thirty minutes,” Hope announced. Izuku and Chip looked down, too much sadness for such small beings to carry at their age. She smiled sadly at them. “Sorry, Izuku, Chip. You know you can always come back whenever you want.” Izuku nodded. “I know…” Hope frowned. She grabbed Izuku’s hand in her right and placed her left on Chip’s head. “Anytime you need me,” a risk, “whether it be the middle of the night or at the break of dawn, an-y-time.” She knows it is a risk to offer it this way. Izuku may very well run away with Chip again after this but she needs the little boy to know that no matter what happens he has a safe place to run to. And a risk it was. He didn’t respond but Hope felt his small fingers grip her bigger ones. She smiled, softer, kinder.

“Say, there is a summer camp coming up. Have you heard of Professor Oak’s Pokemon Summer Camp?” she asked. Izuku shook his head so small she almost missed it. “Well,” she continued, “it is coming up in a week in Pallet Town. The deadline has passed but I know they can squeeze you in.” He looked up at her and tilted his head. “P- Pallet Town?” She nodded. “It is aaaaall the way in the Kanto Region. What do you say?” She could see excitement at the prospect shine in his eyes but it died as soon as it came. He ripped his hand away from hers. “I- I- I can’t. It wouldn’t- No. Daddy won’t let me…” Hope walked over to and behind the check-in counter. She refiled through a drawer until she found a leftover permission slip. “Here,” she knelt down before them once more and held it out. “But-” “Just look over it. Okay?” Izuku swallowed thickly, shaking as he took it from her hands, carefully folded it, and slipped it in his hoodie pocket. “Now, get going.”

Izuku nodded. He pulled his hood over his bushy hair and held out his pocket. “Come on, Chip,” he whispered. Chip jumped in and curled up inside. Izuku ran to the door. He paused just in the doorway and glanced back. Hope met his eyes.

Tired. Much too tired for a six year old. So much pain was held behind those green orbs. Behind it all, something that made her stomach churned. Darkness. Hatred and loathing, things Izuku probably didn’t even realize he was harboring, storming up inside himself just waiting to let it go. She prayed for the day to help him safely release his pain.

“Thank you, Nurse Hope… T- tell Nurse Joy hi for me?” “Of course.” Izuku nodded and ran out into the now dark Vaniville Town.

Hope fell back against the check-in counter, sliding to the floor. Wigglytuff patted her shoulder comfortingly. How? In their small town of Vaniville, how could something so terrible be happening. Why couldn’t she do anything? Officer June couldn’t either, not without evidence. She looked down at her left hand, far too long did she leave it on Chip’s head. She could barely feel it right now. Does the Eevee even know why the scientists are chasing it? Did he forget in the few years he was safely hiding in the Lumiose Pokemon Gardens? Does he know how much danger Izuku is if he stays around? Hope shook her head. She couldn’t change that they had bonded and that Izuku had caught him. She stood up, getting ready to go to bed for the night, Wigglytuff getting ready to shift with the night pokemon that alerts them if someone needs them. All she could do at the moment was try and make sure nothing gets out of control but… she could feel the power gathering around Chip. 

Does Izuku not feel it? Maybe it is because they bonded. Or maybe… it is because Izuku doesn’t have an element that is offsetting it. He can’t harbor a quirk without one. A pokemon shares part of its power with the human it bonds with which is what forms a quirk. Part of the reason that they put Chip in the gardens to start with was in hopes of it bonding and sharing its power to offset it, perhaps dissuade the hunting villains, even if it was a risk that Chip would go to the wrong family. Hope hates it but Chip would have been safer if he had bonded with a different human. 

* **SLAP** *

Hope’s cheeks stung from her own hands. “Don’t worry! Everything will be fine! We don’t even know for sure what Chip can do! For all we know he could just be a really strong Eevee!” she piped to herself. “Wig.” Hope glanced over at the unbelieving face of Wigglytuff and sighed. “I know…” She looked out after Izuku. “I hope he can go to the camp. We could really use Professor Oak’s input on this…”

____________________________

Izuku knew Vaniville Town well by now. It was a small town after all. Knowing it means knowing the blind spots only a six year old boy that is small enough to be five years old would know. In the dark it was even better.

‘Better.’

How was stealing any better? Izuku didn’t like this stealing thing. It isn’t his first rodeo by a long shot. He started this when he was five and Daddy repeatedly "forgot" to feed him and Mommy and felt guilt every time he did but it was worse seeing Mommy act like she was okay when he heard her groan in pain some nights from lack of food and sleep. Daddy keeps her out a lot at night, sending her back when he is done with her. Izuku doesn’t know what happens when she is gone, he is usually asleep for kindergarten in the morning, but he hears yelling sometimes and crying and this weird low moaning sound sort of muffled.

He doesn’t know what Daddy does to Mommy but he hates it! He hates it more than ‘training.’ Sometimes he just wants to scream and hit Daddy back. He wants to take away Mommy’s pain but he is too small. Izuku hates that he is so small. So useless. So… so…

\-----

_‘Deku.’_

\-----

He stops, head falling, fits shaking by his sides.

He chokes when he feels his bond mark heating up painfully like it does when he gets angry. It is like something reaching out to him, spreading through his body, yearning to take over.

“Vee?”

Izuku gasps, dropping to his knees in the shadows behind the PokeMart. He clutches his hoodie, panting, head spinning. Izuku squeezes his burning eyes shut, not noticing their yellow glow.

_ Stop… _

The world spins around him. Every sound feels like a marching drum. Every breath he tries to grasp is like a needle piercing through his lungs.

_ Don’t have time… _

His body jolts, spasming. The burning won’t stop! It won’t go away! Izuku claws at the ground, clenching his teeth to block his rising screams.

_ Mommy… needs… food! _

“Eeeee… VEE!” * **BAM** * Izuku blacks out when he hits the wall of the PokeMart. 

His vision swirls when he opens his eyes again. His senses slowly fade to normal. The little boy sits up, holding his head. “Vee…” Chip nudges his arm. Izuku swallows thickly. “S- sorry, Chip” he whispers. This also was not his first time going through this. It started shortly after getting Chip. Izuku would spasm and this indescribable pain would surge through him. The first time it happened was in the middle of ‘training’ with Daddy. Daddy didn’t train him for a whole week after that! Too bad it didn’t last… Chip always knows what to do though. He doesn’t know exactly what, only a blast of something, but it helps so Izuku will take the blessings as they come.

Izuku looks at the sky. At least much time didn’t pass, maybe an hour? He really needed to get home.

Izuku pressed his hand to the wall of the PokeMart, pushing himself up on unsteady legs. “Eevee…” Chip whines. “We have to get food, Chip,” Izuku refutes. The pokemon lowers its head dejectedly. “It’ll be worse if we wait. Daddy will be really mad if he finds us. Let’s hurry.”

‘Getting food’ means stealing food since Daddy doesn’t give them money either. Izuku hates it. It is the only PokeMart in town so he knows it can’t have much money to waste on him and Mommy stealing food all of the time but they can’t very well starve. With too much practice and skill for a six year old, Izuku picks the lock to the storage unit behind the PokeMart. In it are shelves of medicines and snacks and magazines that are reprinted over and over again. He doesn’t have much time as it will be closing soon. He can hear the night employee closing up through the ‘Employee’s Only’ door. He tries to be quick but his legs are unsteady. The world seems to spiral every so often leaving him disoriented thinking he was facing one way when it was really the other.

“Slow day,” grumbles the employee. “Why do they even have a night shift? No one in this ragtag town needs this junk at night.”

Izuku swallows thickly. He had to go. NOW. With a few boxes of energy bars and a couple of water bottles, Izuku bolts to the back door. He hears the lock *click* just as the employee enters the back room. Izuku jumps behind the dumpster, using his size to his advantage. With a bulletting heart and rushing blood, he waits for the employee to leave before booking it as fast as his little legs can take him.

Up the dirt roads, through the Rhyhorn field, behind this and that house and…

Izuku picks up a small pebble he keeps outside of his room window. He tosses it against the glass. * **ting** * Almost instantly it opens. Mommy looks so frantic. He has never been gone so long before. A rope from the survival bag Mommy and Daddy packed for him when he was born was thrown down. Quick work was made up it. “Hurry!” Mommy whispered. Izuku heard Smokey whine a bit. Izuku’s heart dropped.

_ Daddy’s awake… _

He does not have time to send the food through. Izuku forces his body through the small gap in the bars.

* **step** * * **step** * * **step** *

He can hear Daddy getting closer and closer. Mommy pulls on his arms, Chip tries to help by pulling on his hood.

* **Step** * * **Step** * ***Step*** * **POP** *

Izuku crashes into Mommy. He immediately strips off the hoodie and throws it in his closest from over her shoulder all in one go. Mommy throws the covers over him and Chip.

* **creeeaaak** *

He holds his breath as he hears the door open. Mommy coolly stands, same as always. “Come, my love,” Daddy coos, a term of such endearment and yet Izuku feels that it does not come with the right meaning. “Hisashi… please… not tonight…” Mommy pleads. It takes everything in Izuku not to flinch when Daddy growls. “I’m sorry? Did I stutter? I believe I said ‘Come.’ Or would you like me to-” “I’m coming,” Mommy said hurriedly. Daddy chuckled.

Izuku hates Daddy’s chuckle. It sounds wrong. So different from when Izuku would come home with a drawing he scribbled of them back before he was deemed elementless and Daddy would praise him for it.

\-----

_ ‘Look, Daddy! Look!’ _

_ Izuku let go of Mommy’s hand having just gotten home from preschool. He waved the paper around happily. _

_ ‘What is it, little man?’ Daddy crouched and caught the charging ball of energy. Izuku shoved the paper in his face. ‘This one is me. This one is Mommy. And this one is you!’ he announced. Daddy chuckled and ruffled his hair. ‘Want a talented artist, our little man is! Let’s hang it on the fridge, hm?’ _

\-----

Izuku did flinch when the door slammed behind Daddy and Mommy. He uncurled from his blankets but kept them tight over his shoulders, rocking back and forth, and back and forth, and back an-

A scream.

-d forth, and back and f-

A cry.

-orth, and back and forth.

A grunt.

Chip curled up in his lap, whimpering at the noises. Another tear. More and more and more. Izuku didn’t bother wiping them away. “It’s going to be okay,” Izuku whispers to the pokemon but it is more to himself than anything. “It’s okay. It’s okay. Everything is okay.” The time ticks by deep into the night but the rocking boy does not sleep, a foreign concept to him. “It’s okay. It’s okay. Everything is okay.” But as he hears his mother’s pain echo through the house, those words sound fake to his ears, lies he chooses to listen to because he is only six. What else can he cling to in such times? “I- it’s okay. It’s okay. We w- will be okay. It’s okay. I- it’s okay.”

The door opens. _It will be okay._

Mommy is thrown in. _Everything will be okay._

Her clothes are a mess, half off, half on. _It’s okay._

The door slams closed. _E- everything will be okay…_

Izuku crawls to his mother as she tries to pull herself together. Just like she has done for him so many times before, he pulls her down and lets her rest on his legs. He doesn’t understand what happens between Daddy and Mommy or why she comes in with messy hair and torn clothes when she leaves with them all on the right way. That’s okay. “E- everything will be okay, M- Mommy,” he whispers. “Everything w- will be ok-”

“ ** _Make it stop…_** ” she begs.

Izuku’s face spreads into a smile, the only thing he knows to do. “I- it’s okay,” he pleads against Mommy’s cries. “It’s okay.” He runs his small hands through her hair, Chip rubs against her, purring loudly. “I- i- it will b- be okay.”

…

“It w- will…”

…

“M- Mommy?”

Her chest rises and falls. Sleeping. Izuku wants to cry. He wants to scream and yell and thrash and tell Daddy what he is doing is wrong! He wants Kacchan to stop calling him ‘Deku’ and for Daddy to call him ‘little man’ and for Mommy to smile a- and for him to stop h- having to steal food a- a- and for everything to go back to good and happy times because happy times are goodtimesandnotbadtimesandDaddydoesn’thurthimandDaddydoesn’thurtMommyandwhen everythingis OKAY!!!

But Izuku doesn’t know how to go back to happy times so…

He pulls the pillows and blankets off of his bed. He carefully lifts Mommy’s head and places a pillow beneath it before draping a blanket over her. He curls up next to her, lifting her arm a bit so he can be in her hold, if only a bit. Chip pulls his lamp string, turning it off and jumps down from his desk. He curls under the blanket in between Izuku and Mommy. Izuku holds Chip to his chest tightly and finally… cries.

“I- it will be okay,” he whispers to the dark. “I- it will b- be okay. Everything w- will be okay.”

\-----

_ ‘Make it stop…’ _

\-----

  
  


_ Somebody… _

Izuku squeezes his wet eyes shut.

_ Somebody make it okay. _


	3. Professor Oak's Pokemon Summer Camp!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Inko and Smokey sneak Izuku and Chip to go to the summer camp.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone feeling? I am so glad you all are responding well to the idea of this fic. ^-^

“A- are you sure?”

“Yes, sweetie, I’m sure.”

“I don’t think this is a gooder idea.”

“Izuku, it is fine.”

The little boy frowned as Mommy slid his backpack over his shoulders. “But D- Daddy will be mad!” Mommy grabbed his shoulders, rushed, and spun him around, leveling him in the eyes. “Izuku, we can’t change what Daddy does. I’m so sorry. I know it hurts and you don’t like training but by gosh I am your mother and I refuse to let your childhood be completely ruined.” Izuku didn’t understand these complicated things. All he knew was that he was going to camp and Mommy would be left alone here with Daddy. She pulled him forward and pressed a kiss to his forehead. “I talked to Nurse Hope about the cost already.” She smiled. “Go to camp, Izuku. Have fun.” “Bu-” “Mommy will handle Daddy.” She stood and opened their bedroom door.

Izuku stared up at Smokey who was waiting for them towering over Izuku with those dark, gleaming eyes and smokey scent. Mommy said Daddy hurts Smokey too but Izuku was still scared of him. Smokey’s fire burns like Daddy’s and his fangs are sharp. Izuku still has a nasty bite mark that scarred over his left side.

“Smokey, I am entrusting them to your care,” Mommy pet his horns. “Please take them to the Pokemon Center.” “Doom.” Izuku shook. He didn’t want to stay but he also didn’t want to go! He couldn’t leave Mommy with Daddy! And what about when he came back next week? Daddy is going to be so mad at him. Mommy picked him up and sat him on Smokey’s back. “Grab onto Smokey’s horns.” Izuku nodded, doing so. Mommy led them to the front door. She grabbed his hands. “Izuku, Mommy loves you very much.” Somehow those words filled Izuku with more dread than joy. She smiled and opened the front door. Cold morning air billowed into the house. “Don’t worry,” Mommy whispers, stepping back.

“Everything will be okay.”

Tears filled Izuku’s eyes. “Mo-” “Go, Smokey, before Hisashi wakes up. Take care of my son!” Izuku lurched forward but Smokey spun and ran off away from the house. “MOMMY!” He watched her fade into the distance, to a place he couldn’t see her, where he couldn’t reach her, where he couldn’t protect her and tell her that everything was okay.

Behind this and that house, through the Rhyhorn field, and down the dirt roads, Izuku clung to Smokey’s neck. “W- we have to go back!” … “Smokey!” … “P- Please!” But Smokey didn’t stop. Izuku flinched when something wet hit his cheek. “Huh…?” He looked up.

Smokey was crying… _Smokey can be sad?_ Izuku didn’t think Smokey could be anything but mean and scary but as the Houndoom’s tears mingled with Izuku’s own, Izuku could only cry harder.

\-----

_ Izuku looked up at the sound of clawing at his door. Mommy held a finger to her lips and opened it. Smokey sat outside with a towel of something. ‘Good boy,’ Mommy pet his horns before taking the towel. ‘Thank you, Smokey.’ ‘Doom.’ Closing the door, Mommy turned and unfolded it to reveal a couple of apples and slices of bread. _

\-----

_ ‘Get up, Izuku.’ _

_ Daddy stormed to him. He tried, he really did, but his arms ached and he couldn’t feel his legs anymore. ‘I said… get up!’ Daddy kicked him in the stomach sending him flying. Izuku couldn’t so much as see straight, the blurry form of Chip already unconscious a few feet away in his sight. ‘Come on, you want to be a hero, don’t you?’ Daddy walked close again. _

_ ‘Doom.’ _

_ A big, black and white four-legged figure stood in between him and Daddy. _

\-----

_ Izuku felt himself going in and out of consciousness. He recognized the basement, being carried up the stairs, and the direction of his room but as he was laid in his bed, half-awake, he truly remembered the soft fur of the creature who brought him up and carried him so gently. _

\-----

“I- I’m sorry…”

Smokey came to a screeching halt, almost throwing Izuku off. Izuku gripped the pokemon’s fur in his tiny hands. “I- I called you mean,” he cried. “A- and scary too. Y- you don’t l- like this either?” Smokey settled on the ground. He turned and picked up Izuku from his back by Izuku’s shirt and sat Izuku between his paws before laying and curling around the small boy. “Doom…” he whined. Izuku frowned, still a bit frightened. He settled against Smokey, laying his head on his stomach. 

“I- I’m scared, Smokey,” Izuku finally whispered. “Mommy wants me to make friends and go to camp b- but what about her? Doesn’t Mommy want friends too?” He hid his face in the black fur. “I don’t want to leave her with Daddy…” Smokey whimpered. “Does Daddy hurt you too?” “Houndoom.” “I’m sorry…” Izuku glanced up. “I- if I go, will you protect Mommy this week, Smokey?” He giggled when the pokemon licked his face, Smokey’s tongue hot from his internal temperature.

Izuku winced when light from the sun hit his eyes.

“A- ah! You have to get back soon before Daddy wakes up!” Smokey stood and all but threw Izuku on his back. Izuku grabbed his horns. “Go, Smokey! Go!” Izuku still didn’t like the prospect of leaving Mommy at home alone with Daddy, if only for a week, but he knew that he couldn’t go back now and… Smokey would protect Mommy. Everything would be okay, just like Mommy said and Mommy never lies.

Smokey stopped outside of the Vaniville Town Pokemon Center. Though it was early morning and a couple more hours would pass before the other participating children would arrive, Nurse Hope was waiting for him outside already.

“Good morning, Izuku,” she greeted. “Morning!” he jumped off Smokey and turned back to the pokemon, raising his hands. Smokey leaned down and put his face in them. “Y- you take care of Mommy, okay?” “Doom!” Izuku smiled and let go. “Bye, bye, Smokey!” he waved. The pokemon spun around and ran off. The greenette yawned, rubbing his eyes. “Someone’s still tired,” Nurse Hope giggled. “I suppose it is a bit early. We have a room trainers use that you can sleep in.” Izuku nodded. “Where’s Chip?” she asked as they went inside.

“Chips… resting.” Izuku pulled out the minimized pokeball from his pocket.

\-----

_ * **BAM** * _

_ 'Vee!' 'Chip!' Izuku tried to run to his pokemon. Daddy grabbed his shirt and flung him into the weight set on the other side of the basement. 'Hey, now, little man, I never said you could stop.' Izuku stared over at Chip. 'B- but-' Daddy kicked him in the small of his back causing Izuku to fall on his stomach. His eyes widened when several pounds of weight were placed on his back. 'C- can’t breathe!' Daddy rolled his eyes. 'You want to help Chip that badly then you have to be able to lift that much. I won’t let you go. You have to get out yourself.' _

_ Izuku tried, he really did. He pushed against the floor until his arms gave out, scraped and clawed at the concrete until his fingers bled, but he couldn’t lift himself up. He dropped from his minuscule lift, panting. The weights forced his chest to the ground, pressing against his lungs. _

_ In his air-deprived state, Izuku was forced to watch Daddy ‘train’ Chip with tears in his eyes. _

\-----

Izuku examined his fingernails, cracked and split from the night before. It hurt to even move his arms but of course he couldn’t let Nurse Hope know that so he acted as if it didn’t. He acted as if his chest didn’t ache every time he took a breath or that there was no blackish-blue bruise on his shoulder or that the burn marks on his legs weren’t from Daddy’s fire-breathing quirk and instead accidentally tripping while pulling cookies from the oven with Mommy.

\-----

_ ‘Mommy…? Why can’t I tell anyone?’ _

_ Mommy rocked Izuku back and forth. ‘It’s for your safety, Izu,’ she promised. ‘I know that sounds weird but… Daddy won’t be happy if anyone else finds out.’ _

_ Izuku crossed his arms and pouted. ‘Daddy is never happy.’ _

_ ‘I know,’ Mommy sighed. ‘But he will be even more unhappy and hurt you more.’ _

_ ‘Like when he drinks that brown stuff that makes his breath smell really, really bad?’ Smokey snorted from outside the door. _

_ Mommy smiled sadly. ‘Yes, like when he drinks that brown stuff.’ _

\-----

Izuku didn’t like that brown stuff he decided. Daddy drinks it often. Izuku has never tasted it but it makes Daddy more violent. Training is worse than usual those nights and his breath smells so bad, especially with the smoke he emits with his quirk, Fire Breathing. When he is really, super duper angry and drinks it Daddy will break the bottle sometimes and use that too. Having a glass bottle broken over your head really hurts, you know! And that brown liquid makes the cuts sting bad too.

“Here we are,” Nurse Hope opens the door to the room. It has two bunk beds on either side of the room. Izuku has slept here on a few occasions when 'getting food' for Mommy. When he comes to the Pokemon Center it is usually to help Nurse Hope but on those times he just can’t. His bones ache from training just thirty minutes prior to escaping and his vision is spiraling. Nurse Hope noticed his state like that once and let him sleep. It was only for thirty minutes because he couldn’t really waste too much time but it is a good sleep. At least Daddy won’t come in.

Izuku climbed into bed and curled under the covers. “I’ll wake you when the others start to arrive,” Nurse Hope runs a hand through his hair. Izuku can’t help but lean into the touch. So kind, so loving. Not desperate like Mommy or mean like Daddy. “Sleep well,” she whispers before leaving. Izuku comes to realize he misses that touch. The door closes leaving him in the dark. With another yawn, he falls asleep.

____________________________

Hope cast one last glance at Izuku before closing the door. She swallows a sigh and walks off.

\-----

_ ‘M- Mommy said I can come,’ Izuku holds out the paper, looking down, ‘but w- we don’t have money to.’ _

_ Hope’s eyes went past the paper and to the sleeve of the greenette’s kindergarten sleeve. She could just make out a bruise peeking out from under it. Hope smiles and takes the paper. ‘No worry about that! We have extra funds to help those financially struggling.’ _

_ Izuku tilted his head. ‘Finsally struggling?’ _

\-----

No, the Pokemon Center did not have extra funds. The plane ticket, food, room, and board cost of the trip came straight from Hope’s wallet and that was perfectly fine. She would work a few extra hours to keep Izuku out of his house as long as possible.

She sighed loudly as she slummed in one of the waiting room chairs. Hope raised her hand above her head. The way Izuku leaned into that as though he was starved for such affection. Her fist shook as she closed it and pressed it to her chest.

‘Dangnabbit’ she said when she stubbed her toe. Ha. She knows more words than that and there are many she would like to use against Hisashi Midoriya right this very moment. It’s terrifying, really, how great an actor the man is. Vaniville Town is a small town. Here everybody knows everybody and their grandma’s. As such, everybody knows Mr. Midoriya is this kind, loving father figure who works so hard for his son and stay-at-home wife, Inko Midoriya. What a load of bull! How did no one see it? It was so obvious! The way Izuku jumps at loud noises or flinches when someone touches him. The fear in his eyes when anyone raises their voice and the fire.

Oh the fire.

Last winter Izuku came over in nothing but shorts and a t-shirt even though there was frost on the ground, not even shoes. Hope lit the fireplace in the lobby of the center for him but when she turned around the boy was on the floor, fallen on his rear end, eyes locked on the flames in a wide, petrified stare, glassy as if they weren’t really staring at a simple furnace. His breathing was all over the place and his body shook like the last leaves of that year's fall.

  
  


\-----

_ ‘Izuku?’ _

_ ‘No… no, No, NO!!!’ _

_ ‘Izuku!’ _

\-----

The greenette and Chip had practically thrown themselves out into the freezing air, little legs carrying them as far as they possibly could.  Hope never lit another fire near Izuku again.

She slammed her fist on the chair to her right. How did ho one see it? No, it wasn’t that they didn’t see it, they chose not to. Because Izuku has no element. Because Izuku has no quirk. Because Chip has three legs instead of four. Because Mr. Midoriya would neeeeveeeer do something like that to his child. It made Hope sick.

“Tuff! Wigglytuff!” Wigglytuff came and draped a blanket over her. Hope sighed and took it. “Thank you, Wigglytuff,” she stood, taking the blanket with her. “I am going to try and catch at least an hour more shut eye, okay?” She patted the pokemon’s head. “Watch over Izuku, will you?” “Tuff!” Hope glanced once more at the closed door to the trainer lodging. She shook her head and left for her own room.

____________________________

* **knock knock knock** *

Izuku’s eyes fluttered open just as the door opened. “Wakey wakey,” Nurse Hope whispered. “The other children will be arriving soon.” He hummed and sat up, rubbing at his eyes. Izuku paused and looked down at his hands. They were wet. Looking down at the pillow, there was a small wet spot on it too. It took a second to realize he had been crying in his sleep.

“Are you okay, Izuku?” Nurse Hope asked.

Izuku’s eyes widened. He couldn’t cry in front of her! Bad, Izuku, bad! He quickly wiped his eyes before turning to her and smiling. “Y- yeah!” Izuku swung his feet off the bed and jumped down. The world spun for a split second. When his vision evened, Nurse Hope was in front of him, hands on his arms holding him up, eyes worried. Izuku giggled nervously. “W- wow! It was so swirly!” He joked. “Mommy says that happens when I don’t eat. I was so excited last night I guess I forgot to eat!”

“Izu-”

“Nurse Hope?” They both looked towards the door. The pinkette sighed and stood. “A parent is here. Let’s go out.”

Izuku grabbed his bag from beside the bed, his arms screaming at the added weight, and followed Nurse Hope out. In the lobby, Izuku came face to face with Katsuki Bakugou. His eyes widened. “K- Kacchan!” The angry blonde growled. “What are you doing here, Deku?” “Cyndaquil!” Kacchan’s Cyndaquil let out puffs of fire from his back. Izuku paled.

\-----

_ ‘You know, Izuku, a lot of heroes have armor that is fire resistant.’ _

_ Izuku pushed himself up one tired legs. He looked up and met a small flame in the palm of Daddy’s hand. _

_ ‘Wouldn’t it be great if you didn’t need a costume with fire resistance?’ _

\-----

* **SLAP** *

The tall blonde woman behind Kacchan slapped her son upside the head. “Be nice, Katsuki.” She turned to Izuku. “Hey, Izu! I haven’t seen you in forever!” Izuku swallowed thickly, heart ramming in his chest. He smiled up at her. “H- hi, Aunty Mitsuki!” She ruffled his hair, not noticing his minuscule flinch, and looked up at Nurse Hope “I’m here to drop off my brat for Professor Oak’s Pokemon Summer Camp.” Izuku noticed how Kacchan had a suitcase and backpack. Probably for bedding and the like. Izuku didn’t have any of that…

“Of course,” Nurse Hope nodded. “He can stay here until it is time to go. Their teacher will be going with them and will be here soon to take them all to the airport.” Izuku’s eyes widened. _N- Nurse Hope isn’t coming?_ Aunty Mitsuki nodded. “Behave, brat.” “Shut it, hag.” Aunty sighed. “Where did I go wrong?” She waved. “Have fun, you two!”

…

…

…

“S- so-” “Don’t talk to me,” Kacchan stormed off and sat on one of the waiting room seats. Izuku sighed. He sat on the farthest chair from the door on the other side of the lobby area. As more kids came, he noticed that none of them came near him. He was used to it. Everyone avoids him in kindergarten too.

\-----

‘Just go out there and make a new friend, okay?’

\-----

_Sorry, Mommy… No one wants to be my friend._ He curled into a ball on the chair, wrapping his arms around his legs and watching everyone from behind his knees. _I don’t think this is going to be as fun as Mommy says…_

* **clap clap** *

“Okay, children!” his teacher, who was previously talking to Nurse Hope, walked into the middle of the room. “Time to get on the bus. We have an hour and forty five minute trip to Santalune City and a five hour plane trip to the Kanto Region so we have to get going. All pokemon in pokeballs!” Izuku jumped off of his chair. He followed the other children to where the bus was waiting.

“Wait,” Miss Watanabe stopped him before he could step on the bus, “I didn’t receive a permission slip or money from you.” Izuku paled. Right, the kindergartners were supposed to give the paper to their teachers. Nurse Hope placed a hand on his shoulder. “He paid me and gave me the permission slip.” Miss Watanabe narrowed her eyes. “Why did it not come to me then?” “Something tells me you would have lost it,” Nurse Hope said nonchalantly. “Excuse me?” “What?” Miss Watanabe shook her head. “I need to see it for Izuku to get on the bus.”

“Miss Watanabe, is there some reason that you would not want him to come?”

Izuku’s eyes widened. _Stop… It’s okay. I don’t have to go… Don’t fight because of me._

\-----

_ ‘He’s just a child, Hisashi!’ _

_ ‘A disgrace is what he is!’ _

\-----

“Of course not,” Miss Watanabe’s voice sounded strained. She smiled down at him but Izuku saw the disgust in her eyes. “Get on the bus, Izuku.” He glanced up at Nurse Hope who smiled kindly up at him. Izuku nodded. “Y- yes, ma’am.” There were rules for Izuku when walking by his classmates. He looked down the row of laughing, playing children.

**Rule #1: Never look up.**

He lowered his head and tried to quickly walk through the row in between the seats. No eye contact, no passing words, hold your breath and hope for the best.

**Rule #2: If someone sticks out a foot to trip you, trip.**

Izuku saw the foot, he did. Still, he let his foot catch on it and let out a gasp as he face planted on the floor of the bus. His face heated up with shame and embarrassment at the children laughing. “What an idiot.” “My Mommy says to not call people that.” “I bet she calls him it too.” Izuku forced his tired body up, tears filling his eyes, lip quivering. Always trip. It’s worse if you don’t.

**Rule #3: If someone throws something at you, don’t dodge.**

Paper balls hit him on the head and back. A few said “ _Sorry_ ,” but it was all fake. Izuku knew it was. Was that a rock? It doesn’t matter, don’t look up, let it happen.

And then there was one extra rule for sitting anywhere, whether it be in class or on a bus. **Honorary Rule #4: Sit in the back.**

Izuku looked down at the designated “Deku Seat.” It was the very last seat on the bus, all the way in the back. The padding was worn with a spring sticking out a bit, and oh, would you lookie there? A thumbtack sticking up is already waiting for him. He heard the snickers from the little girls in front of his seat. Izuku sighed and picked up the tack, putting it in his bag when he sat. He would hate for someone else to accidentally step or sit on it.

“Are we all ready to go?” Miss Watanabe called down the line. “Yeah!” “Off we go then!” Izuku watched the bus pull away from the Pokemon Center. He waved goodbye to Nurse Hope through the window.

_ N- Nurse Hope really isn’t coming? _

She smiled sadly at him and waved. Izuku felt despair well up in him. _Nurse Hope… isn’t coming… Mommy isn’t coming…_ Izuku felt his heart speed up. He peeked out from the chair in front of him. He was trapped here with all of these children. Izuku curled up against the side of the bus. He couldn’t do this. It’s not okay. Mommy isn’t here. Tears welled in Izuku’s eyes. He tried to suck in air, force his lungs to work, but he couldn’t. His chest already hurt as it begged him for air. Black spots scattered his already blurry vision. I want Mommy. I want Nurse Joy. Take me back. I don’t want to go back. Daddy is back. Back is bad. Here is bad. 

“Why is Deku here?”

Izuku’s breath hitched, his eyes flitting to the back of the seat that the girls were in.

“I dunno.”

“This is stupid. My Mommy says people without elements have diseases.”

“Really?! Ew!”

“Deku should just stay at home.” “Nobody wants him here anyways.” “Does that mean his parents have them too?” “Have what?” “Cooties!” “Duh!” “I feel bad for his parents.” “Me too.” “My Mommy said that if she had an elementless kid she would put them up for adoption.” “Why don’t they do that?” “I dunno.” “They must be stupid.” “Yeah.”

“Deku shouldn’t be here.”

Izuku… doesn’t want to be here either.

____________________________

* **C** - **CLANG** *

Inko stared down at the metal spatula she just dropped. Her hands shook so much as she tried to pick it up that she almost couldn’t. Her eyes kept flipping from the food on the stove to the clock above the overhang.

Izuku had left nearly nine hours ago. By now, he should be on the plane, safely away from here. Hisashi never checks on them in the morning, Inko knew this, but she had to get Izuku out of the house before Hisashi woke up so they would not pass him in leaving or on his way to work. But Hisashi always made sure to get home before she came home with Izuku. Those were the only times Inko was allowed to leave the house: taking Izuku to and from kindergarten. When he was away at work, Smokey guarded the house. Well, ‘guarded.’ Inko had expectations of her. She prepared meals for when Hisashi came home, though she was not allowed to eat them herself. She could sneak a bite but it did not feel fair to Izuku. Inko had to clean the house. It better be spotless by the time Hisashi gets home, no matter how many beer cans there are or what food was spilled. During that time Smokey would help her clean, let her cry into his fur, or curl around her while she rested.

The worst part was cleaning Hisashi’s room, the one she used to share with him back when he was a loving, caring, only-slightly abusive husband. It wasn’t just the memories, though those were a part of it. It was the toys. Hisashi uses special toys on her at night, painful toys. He makes her clean them too while he is gone but he lays out the ones he will use that night before he leaves for work as if to taunt her. To scare her.

It works.

But she sucks it up. Hisashi trains Izuku once a day, unless the boy has a seizure, and only for a maximum of two hours, unless he is drunk and it goes on for longer. Not for a second during that time does Inko not bang against the door of Izuku’s room where she is kept for the time. She bangs and cries and screams, begging Hisashi to stop hurting the little boy, crying out for anyone outside but in the country the houses are too far apart. She can’t stop it… so she sucks it up because if she doesn’t it will be worse for Izuku. Even if her body is taken and turned inside out and she doesn’t feel like it is her own anymore, Inko will live as a shell of herself if it means that she spares her son at least one more second of the hell hole that is the Midoriya household basement.

“Houndoom!”

Inko jumps, spinning around at Smokey’s cry. The dog-like pokemon runs from the window to the edge of the kitchen where he sits and acts as though he is dutifully guarding Inko. The woman tries to calm herself, act as though nothing is wrong, as though Izuku is still at school and she will be leaving soon to get him.

* **click** *

The front door is unlocked. Inko is just placing down a warm meal of udon on the table for her husband, tormentor, abuser, _rapist_. She stands to the side of the dining room entrance as Hisashi drops his bag and blazer by the front door. He says no words as he passes her coldly despite the warm air that follows all fire-elemented people. Once he sits and begins to eat, Inko exits. She moves around the house on tiptoes, hanging up Hisashi’s blazer and work bag before going to the kitchen to clean.

And time ticks by, nothing but the sound of running water and the fork on porcelain filling the space.

“Shouldn’t you be leaving to pick up the brat by now?” Hisashi’s deep voice, the same voice that drew Inko to him back in high school, carried from the dining room. Inko took a deep breath. “He isn’t at kindergarten,” she responded from the kitchen. “... What?” She heard Hisashi stand. Inko felt her body begin to shake. She gripped the counter painfully tight, not looking up even as Hisashi entered the kitchen with his bowl. “What do you mean, ‘He is not at kindergarten’?” Inko bit her tongue. * **BANG** * She flinched as the bowl soared past her face and landed in the metal sink. Hisashi leaned in so close his nose was almost brushing her cheek. “Hey. I asked you a question.” Inko held her head high. “I heard you.” She steeled herself and turned to face the man she used to love. “Izuku is at camp right now. He will be gone for the week.” Hisashi’s eye twitched. “I don’t like your attitude right now.” “Yeah, well, I haven’t like yours for tw-”

* **SLAP** *

Inko’s head spun from the force of the hit. She bit her tongue, tears filling her eyes, facade breaking. She kept her face turned to the side, cheek stinging. The greenette gasped when Hisashi’s hand took a fist full of her hair and pulled her to her toes to meet his rage-filled eyes. “You best watch your tone, Missy. Who the hell gave him permission to go to this camp?” Inko swallowed. She couldn’t stop shaking. “Did you think it would stop anything?” Hisashi asked. “Protect him?” His face split into a giddy grin. “Do you really think you are capable of that?”

Inko’s heart hurt with every word he said. No, she isn’t strong enough. She knows this. She knows that Hisashi is stronger than her, that even if she ran with Izuku he would find them, even if she told the police, Hisashi would be able to kill them before the police even arrived. Tears fell freely from her face.

“Oh, my love,” Hisashi cooed, leaning down and kissing her, knowing how much she hates it, “you know better than that, don’t you?” He let her go. Inko collapsed to the floor, legs too weak to stand, psyche too shaken to look up. So, Hisashi crouched to her.

“Fine, I won’t call him back.”

Inko’s eyes widened. “Y- you won’t?!” she asked, looking up. Hisashi smiled. “No. He can have his fun, play with his little kiddie friends and whatnot. But you know, if I can’t have fun training my dear, dear son, I am going to need to entertain myself some other way.”

And just like that, Inko’s hope dropped like a rock in her stomach. “You know what that means, right, my love?” Inko looked down again. “W- we don’t have any more condoms,” she whispered. “Oh, we don’t need any of those,” Hisashi said. “I’ve been thinking, Inko. If some man decided to screw my wife and have a child with her then the child I’ve always wanted isn’t really mine, now it is?” Inko snapped her head up. “Hisa-” Hisashi’s lips smashed into her. Inko tried to pull away, to push him off, but he held her by her hair again. Inko gasped when he finally let her go. She coughed and hacked out smoke.

“My love,” Hisashi lifted her chin, “I want to have a child with you.”

____________________________

“Wow! It’s so pretty!”

Izuku opened his eyes from where he was resting his head against the window of the plane. He looked out of the window and his eyes sparkled. They were flying over the region of Kanto, right over Viridian City and oh the city from this height looked so beautiful! He pressed his face against the glass watching them go down and it get closer and closer.

* **doo** *

The overhead speakers cued their seat belt lights to turn on for landing. Izuku quickly snapped his across his waist. The plane shook a bit and Izuku almost fell forward when it landed. Miss Watanabe stood when they were allowed. “Okay, class, stay together! Let’s not get lost in the airport. There will be a bus outside waiting to take us to Pallet Town. Chop, chop! Let’s be quick!” Izuku unbuckled himself and jumped off his seat, joining his class at the back. The airport in Viridian City was a bit smaller than the one in Santalune City but he still almost got separated, crowds of people moving in between. The people in Kanto were more than his class, he realized. “H- hey! Wait up!” Izuku pushed past a crowd and popped out just in time to see the class boarding the bus. Miss Watanabe saw him run up and sighed as if she was hoping they had lost him somewhere.

She was. He knew she was.

Izuku avoided her gaze as he jumped onto the bus. He took a deep breath. Don’t look up, walk fast, trip, don’t cry, keep going, don’t dodge, and… oh! This bus’s last seat is so pretty! Izuku sat down, taking pleasure in the fact that there was no spring poking him in the but nor the thumbtack waiting for him.

It was only a half-hour trip to Pallet Town and through the window Izuku already saw so many pokemon he has never seen before. Despite his less-than-smooth trip here, Izuku could feel a childish excitement he hadn’t felt in so long bloom inside him. He had to stop himself from taking a deep breath of the Kanto air when he jumped off the bus in Pallet Town so his chest wouldn’t hurt. 

Pain, pain, go away, Izuku is going to have fun today!

Pallet Town is smaller like Vaniville Town but it is a much more forested and green town than their own dusty roads and Rhyhorn fields. Their camp would be a further bit into the forest. Izuku trailed happily behind his class, taking in the scenery. _Oooooh! What pokemon was that?! I’ve never seen that flower. Is it native? Wow! They made a home out of a fallen tree!_ There was so much to take in and see. Izuku could not help the smile that graced his face.

“Welcome!” Izuku finally looked forward to the call. A tan man with short, dirty-blonde hair wearing a lab coat walked up to them. Only then did he realize that they had reached the camp. There was a clearing with cabins on the left, a big white tent with picnic tables on the right, a lake right in the middle, and a few cabins scattered here and there with dirt trails leading into the forest. “I am Professor Oak,” the man introduced himself. “We are so pleased to have visitors all the way from the Kalos Region here!” He pointed to the cabins on the left. “Over there will be the kids cabins. We have separated classes to some degree so you all can meet new people. You will also have a cabin leader. Your cabin group will be your team group for the week.” Professor Oak pointed to the big white tent. “That there is the mess hall where we will be eating all of our meals.” Gesturing to the lake he said, “We will have recreational time when you can swim. For now, that’s all. Your teacher, Miss Watanabe, will check you all in and then you can find your respective cabins and get settled in. Your cabin leaders will tell you what to do from there. Okay?”

“Okay!”

Izuku bounced on his toes. _This is going to be so exciting!_ He bit his lip. _I hope I don’t have anyone in my class in my cabin. They are going to tell everyone I am quirkless and that I don't have an element…_ In the end, Izuku’s luck pulled through, which was a miracle because he didn’t have much. He was the only one from Vaniville Town Kindergarten in his cabin.

He stood in front of Squirtle Cabin in a ball of nerves and jitteriness. He didn’t want to go in and be immediately rejected. _They don’t know, Izuku. They will ask. You can do this! No, I can’t! This is-_

The door swung open. “HEY THERE, CAMPER!” In front of the wide-eyed Izuku stood a woman, taller than Mommy but shorter than Daddy. She had auburn hair pulled back into a ponytail and brown eyes and a big ol’ smile. “Are you part of the Squirtle Team?” Izuku nodded hesitantly. He jumped back when she thrust out her hand. Confusion flashed in her eyes at his odd reaction but she didn’t question it. “I’m your team leader, Delia Ketchum, but you can just call me Miss Delia, k? What is your name?” Izuku swallowed thickly, staring at her hand. She frowned and crouched down. “Hey there,” she said, much softer. “It’s okay. I won’t hurt you.” _It’s okay. It’ll be okay. Everything is okay._ “Do you have a name?” she asked again. Izuku nodded. “I- it’s Izuku. M- Midoriya I- I- Izuku.” She smiled. “You are from Kalos, right? You guys say your names backwards there when you introduce yourself, right?” He nodded. “Alrighty then! Well, welcome to Kanto. Let’s go in, all of your other cabin-mates are here.”

She stood and held out her hand. Izuku took a leap of faith and took it. Miss Delia led him in. “Everyone, this is Izuku Midoriya, from the Kalos region. Let’s all get along, okay?” Two boys and two girls looked over at him. Don’t make eye contact. It’s better that way. He looked down. “Ey!” The boy on the far bottom bunk jumped off his bed and came over. He had black hair that stuck up weirdly. A Squirtle followed him. “I’m Tierno! This is my buddy, Squirtle!” Izuku let go of Miss Delia’s hand and gave a sheepish wave. “H- Hi.” “I’m Sana!” The girl on the top bunk of the bunk beds on the right called. She had brown hair in pigtails. She held up a green pokemon with a plant on its back. “This is Bulbasaur!” “Mmm. I’m Trevor,” the boy on the bunk above Tierno’s waved. “This is Charmander.” He had orange hair. “The name’s Toni,” the blonde girl beneath Sana’s bunk waved. “I can’t bring out my pokemon ‘cause it’s a Goldeen.”

Miss Delia giggled. “How about you go get set up?” There was a free set of bunks against the wall. Miss Delia’s was a single bed in the middle. Izuku bowed and went over to the bottom bunk. “Ooooh!” Sana cooed. “Kalosians are so formal!” “Kalosians?” Trevor questioned. “You knoooow, people from Kalos?” Izuku blushed and deposited his bag on his bed.

“Izuku, where is your bedding?” Miss Delia asked. He bit his tongue. “I- I- We… don’t…” She took in a deep breath. “That’s fine!” she chirped, clapping her hands together. “I am sure we can find you some extras at the nurses cabin.”

Izuku jumped when a pillow landed on the floor next to him. It was pink with flowers. “I brought two,” Toni stated, “so you can use that one, mk? But cha gotta give it back by the end of the week.” Izuku picked it up and bowed. “Th- thank you.” “Here,” Trevor threw an extra blanket. “Same as what Toni said.”

_They are so nice… They won’t be if I tell them…_ “Thank you so much.” They smiled at him. 

“Hey, hey, Izuku,” Tierno waved, “what pokemon did you bond with?” A flashbulb lit in his head. If they asked that first then he didn’t have to tell them his element because usually only those with an element bonded! He smiled and pulled the pokeball from his pocket, enlarging it. Chip should be rested now… He released the pokemon.

“Vee!” Izuku’s eyes lit up. Chip was looking so much better now! “Wow!” Tierno knelt by Chip but next to the unfamiliar being, Chip shied away. Tierno chuckled. “It’s just as scared as you! I didn’t know Kalos had Eevee’s too.” “All regions do,” Miss Delia spoke up. “You will probably hear about it this week as this is a pokemon summer camp after all.” 

“What happened to it’s leg?” Sana spoke up. Izuku shrugged. “I- I don’t know really…”

He tried to ask but it was really hard to tell a story with the speech barrier between pokemon and humans. “That’s strange,” Toni commented. Izuku paled. _They think we are strange. I can’t let that happen! This has to be a good week. It has to be!_

“Well would you lookie there, it’s time for dinner already!” Miss Delia said. Since the Kalos kids were the last to arrive and it was such a long journey, most of the first day had already passed. “Alrighty, since it is a pokemon summer camp it is your choice to keep yours out or not.” She opened the door. “Squirtle Team, move out!” Izuku and Chip looked at each other with beaming faces. They happily trotted out after their team.

“ **So** ,” Izuku stopped just outside the door at the familiar voice, “ **they don’t know yet?** ” He paled and looked over to the cabin to his left, Charmander Cabin. Kacchan stood just outside it with a devilish smirk on his face. “It would be a shame if they found out.” Izuku’s breath caught in his throat.

Surely Kacchan wouldn’t tell them. It doesn’t matter to the blonde, right? They aren't on the same team. Why would he go so far as to-

“Izuku!” Miss Delia called his name. Izuku snapped out of it. He cast one more weary glance at Kacchan before running off after his group. “Who was that?” Tierno asked. Izuku gave the best smile he could muster. “J- just a friend.” An old friend. A current bully. But Izuku didn’t say any of that. They walked around the edge of the lake to the mess hall and sat at a picnic table that had a paper with a Squirtle head taped to it. “Here, here!” Tierno pat beside him. Izuku all too happily settled beside the bigger boy.

Dinner was served by table, each table being called to go through a buffet style line and Izuku… ate. He ate! It wasn’t some stolen protein bars or cold food on a plate Daddy brought in every so often. No, it was mashed potatoes, probably instant, chicken fingers, probably previously frozen, carrots, and there was even a cream horn for dessert! The best part? Aside from the lemonade he got and the carrots and cream horn, the potatoes and chicken fingers were _warm_! Izuku almost cried. It was so good!

* _ **screeeeeeeeeeeeeeee**_ -*

All of the people in the tent covered their ears. “Ahem,” Professor Oak stood at the front of the tent where there was a raised platform with a microphone in his hand, “Sorry about that.” He smiled. “Welcome to Professor Oak’s Summer Camp, campers! I hope you have all gotten acquainted with your teams. Here at this camp you will learn about all sorts of pokemon and pokemon facts, participate in games and trials with your bond partner, and even meet some of the pokemon native to the Kanto region. We are so happy to have you here! A special welcome to our friends from the Kalos region and our friends from the Johto region joining us this week! Now, I know you are all enjoying dinner but it is almost time for our first campfire which we will have every night on the other side of the lake so finish up quickly and…”

Fire. CampFIRE.

Professor Oak’s words drowned into the background. Izuku’s face went blank. He felt someone nudge him, shake his shoulder, but he didn’t respond, only stare down at his empty tray. Chip curled into a ball on his lap, shaking in anticipation.

\-----

_ ‘Get up, little man.’ _

\-----

“Izuku?”

He startled with a gasp, looking up. Miss Delia was crouching before him, his team behind her with worried faces. All of the other teams were already up and leaving the tent. “Are you okay?” Okay. Okay. It’s okay. I’m okay. Everything is okay. He forced a smile on his lips. “Y- yeah! Sorry, I guess I z- zoned out.” Sana giggled. “Well zone in, silly! We have to go to the campfire, right, Bulbasaur?” “Bul!” “Let’s go!” Izuku hesitated before running after his team.

_ It will be okay. Everything will be okay. It’s okay. It’s okay. It’s- _

His feet fell short at the edge of the circle of benches on the other side of the lake. In the middle was a roaring fire, flames licking high in the sky. Smoke spiraling, filling his lungs, stinging his eyes. Flashes of orange and yellow colored his face.

\-----

_ ‘Get up.’ _

\-----

He could feel it. Every single flame crawling up his skin, burning it, melting it.. He could smell it. The burning of flesh under his nose. He could breathe it. Smoke, filling his lungs, choking him. He could see it. Daddy’s eyes, his smile, hear his laugh, his growls, and anger! _It burns…_

Izuku stumbled back on his rear, gripping his chest.

_ It burns… Stop… I don’t want to! Don’t take me back! It hurts! _

People were calling out to him, voices, children, his classmates laughing and watching him struggle under the flames. _Stop it! Stop laughing! It’s not my fault!_ He lashed out. _Make it stop! Please! Someone! Help me!_ He clawed at his face, trying to get the smoke out of his eyes, clawed at his skin, trying to rip the fire from his body forcibly. _IT BURNS!!!_

“Eevee!!!”

In a flash of white, Chip headbutted his chest. * **!gasp!** * Izuku’s world spun as a sudden rush of air filled his lungs. “Br- he.” He gasped, greedily taking each breath that his body so greatly needed. “In- ut. I- Out.” His fingers slowly uncurled from the bed sheets. “That’s it, breathe with me. You are doing great.” That voice wasn’t Daddy’s voice. It was too kind. It was too loving. He reached forward, slender hands taking his. “Keep with me. In and out. In… and out…” Izuku felt his eyelids drooping. He took a deep, shaky breath. Finally, his vision and mind cleared. He stared up at the ceiling of a wood cabin. Cabin? Wasn’t he just-

“How are you feeling?” a woman’s voice. His viridian eyes shifted in the voice’s direction. Miss Delia smiled down at him but he could see the underlying fear in her eyes. He tried to push himself up but the woman guided him back down. “No, no, no, it’s okay. You need to rest.” Izuku nodded, looking around the new area. “You are in the nurses cabin,” Miss Delia supplied. Green eyes widened when he saw Kacchan in the corner in a chair with his Cyndaquil in his lap. “Izuku,” the nurse came over. She didn’t look like Nurse Hope or Nurse Joy, just a normal person without a thousand twins. “Do you usually have spasms like that? We didn’t have any record of it on your papers.” He shook his head. “I… It’s… not often…” he replied quietly. She nodded. 

“We called your parents-” Izuku shot up. “No!” All of the people in the cabin stared at him in shock at his outburst. “Uh, erm, I mean… it’s okay!” The nurse cleared her throat. “Of course, your father said you can stay,” Izuku’s and Chip’s eyes widened, “but I do want to see you in the morning to check on you.” The greenette nodded. “Th- thank you…” “Delia, may I speak with you for a second?” the nurse asked. “Of course.” Miss Delia smiled back down at him. “I will be right back. The campfire is still going but I think it’d be best we went to the cabin after this?” Izuku looked down.

“Y- yeah…” Anything. Anything but the campfire.

“Oi,” Izuku looked up, Miss Delia gone and Kacchan walking up to him, “what the hell was that?” Izuku swallowed. “Wh- what do you mean?” The blonde’s head dropped.”Y- you just… you just dropped!” Viridian eyes widened as he realized the Kacchan, of all people, was worried about him. “I watched you f- from the other side. You kept jerking and screaming a- and crying! The adults said it was a spam- no, um spaserm?” Kacchan shook his head, looking up. Izuku took a sharp breath when he saw the tears in his old friend’s eyes. “I was so scared! You just- I thought you were going to die!” “Kacch-” “People don’t come back when they die!” Kacchan grabbed his arm. “You can’t die, Izu! You can’t!”

Despite the obvious fear and how shaken up Kacchan was, Izuku felt anger well in him.

“I can’t?” He narrowed his eyes. “Why do you care? What happened to ‘Deku’? You don’t care about ‘Deku’. Why are you so sad now? It isn’t like this is the first time, you know. You…”

\-----

* **pop** * * **pop** * * **pop** *

_ Izuku stared up at the blonde standing over him, small explosions coming from Kacchan’s hands. _

\-----

“You are just like him!” Izuku yelled, rage filling him by the second. Chip whined, pressing against his arm. Izuku ignored it, throwing off the sheets and standing. He wobbled a bit but held his ground before the wide-eyed blonde. “Y- you and everyone else! You are just like Daddy!” Confusion sparked in Kacchan’s red eyes. “Y- you are mean and hit and punch and use fire a- and… a- and you are mean to your Mommy too!”

The air around them suddenly got cold.

Kacchan scowled. “What did you say?” he hissed. Izuku faltered. “Y- you heard me. Stop acting like you like me again. You said it yourself. You don’t want to be friends with Deku anymore!” * **pop** * Izuku jumped when Kacchan accidentally let out a stressed explosion. “What the hell do you know?!” the blonde yelled. “You think you are some big shot? That you can talk to me like that just because you got sick? You scared everyone in the camp! Did you do it for pity?!” “Pity?!” Izuku stared at his bully in shock. “Y- you think I like those? They hurt! They hurt just like when you hit me! You never ask if I am okay when you hit me so why do you suddenly care?”

____________________________

Katsuki took a step back, his breath billowing out in front of him.

What was this? Izu never yells, never gets mad. What does he mean that Katsuki is like ‘Daddy’? What does he mean that he is mean to Mommy? 

“Y- you think I like those? They hurt! They hurt just like when you hit me! You never ask if I am okay when you hit me so why do you suddenly care?”

That hurt more than Katsuki liked to admit. He didn’t like seeing Izu like that. It was really scary! Izuku wasn’t supposed to move like that, scream like that, cry like that. He just cowers in fear, asks them to stop, and be the crybaby he has always been but not like that! Katsuki didn’t like seeing him like that…

He shivered as the air in the nurse’s cabin got suddenly colder. Frost started to creep from under Izu’s feet and up the walls of the cabin.

“I- Izu?” Izuku growled, narrowed green eyes flashing white. His green hair began to grow in white. Chip beside the boy began to cry out, holding its head pressed to the ground. It’s fur flashed white and brown again at a rapid pace, tail growing to a more slim, pointed form. It sounded in pain. “Why?” Izuku questioned. “What did I do wrong?!” Katsuki is scared. Izu is supposed to not have an element, not have a quirk. More so, Katsuki was angry. Did Izu lie to him?

* **BAM** * * **!SHATTER!** *

Both heads turned to the door as built-up ice shattered. Miss Delia and the nurse came rushing in. “What’s going on?” the auburn-haired woman asked. “I- I don’t know! This- Deku just-” He turned back to the former greenette just in time to see Izu’s eyes roll back and the boy collapse. Katsuki shook with fear. He just… dropped! It wasn’t natural! As the nurse ran past him, Izu’s hair grew back in green. Chip fell over, back to normal, panting. “Katsuki,” Miss Delia grabbed his cold hand, “let’s go. I’ll bring you back to the campfire.” Katsuki was stunned to silence as Miss Delia led him out. He stole one last glance at Izu-

No… Deku. What the hell? Deku had lied to him! Chip looked over at Katsuki, rainbow eyes flashing ever so slightly. Katsuki shivered.

Scary…

____________________________

Delia sat next to the little green-haired boy as he rested in bed. The campfire would be ending soon so she moved him back to their team cabin. When Delia Ketchum first saw the little boy outside their cabin, she expected the same happy, excited child as the others. It was her first time being a Team Leader. She was naive. Delia was not prepared for this shy, jumpy child named Izuku Midoriya. He flinched as most actions towards him and had a slight stutter. Not only that, his Eevee did too. What she did not expect was the spasm.

She had expected something was off, some signs you just notice, but for him to just drop like that. It wasn’t a normal spasm either. It was as if he were writhing, fighting himself.

\-----

_ ‘I am a bit worried about that child,’ Nurse Mimi said after pulling her aside. ‘The way he reacted to me calling his parents was unusual.’ _

_ Delia looked back at the cabin. ‘Yeah… It’s almost like he’s sca-’ Her eyes widened. Ice was coming out from under the crack of the cabin door. ‘What is that?!’ _

\-----

She frowned sadly, combing her fingers through Izuku’s hair, watching his breath billow as if the air was cold but it wasn’t. She heard the boy was elementless but this didn’t add up. “Mmm…” he hummed, pressing into her touch and yet somehow the sound was so sad and pained.  Izuku is only a year older than her own son, Ash, who is also here. Only a year… It hurt her to think this child, so small, so frail, could possibly be an abuse victim. And yet, what could she do? He lived all the way in Kalos.

_ Who would do something so terrible to such a sweet boy? _

____________________________

Izuku woke up the next morning in his bunk in Squirtle Cabin to the sound of moving people. He groaned and rolled over.

“He’s awake!”

Izuku sweatdropped. _I’m not. I wanna sleeeeep._ Well, he wouldn’t be able to sleep again now anyway. Izuku opened his eyes. Tierno, crouching by his bed, waved with a big grin. “Morning!” Izuku blinked. “M- morning.” He sat up. “Vee!” Chip jumped on his lap. “Umph! Chiiiip!” He picked up the pokemon and nuzzled it.

“How are you feeling, Izuku?” He looked up just as Miss Delia was placing her hand on his head. Instinctively, Izuku flinched back, squeezing his eyes tightly shut. She sharply inhaled. “I won’t hurt you,” she whispered. Izuku’s eyes fluttered open. Ah. He messed up. He wasn’t supposed to flinch. _She’ll find out… She can’t find out! Do better, act better, be better. Smile, Izuku. Smile._ He did, trying to force a grin on his face. “S- sorry! Miss Delia is okay!” The woman raised an eyebrow but didn’t comment. She felt his forehead. “No fever, that’s good.” Izuku left out a breath he didn’t know he had been holding when she stood, taking her hand away. He missed the worried look in the woman’s eyes.

“Well then, get dressed!” Miss Delia chirped. “We gotta make it to breakfast!” Izuku grinned and nodded. “Yes, ma’am!”

____________________________

Hope glanced over at the clock behind her above the counter. It was the third day of the camp. She hoped everything was going well. Her wallet was thin but her heart was full knowing Izuku was away from his house. That being said, Izuku was obviously trying to hide his poor home life but he was only a six year old boy so, truth be told, he was doing pretty bad at it. Hope knows he is scared of others finding out but… she wanted to see for herself what is going on behind closed doors.

“Wigglytuff! Watch the center for me. I’m going out.”

“Wigglytuff!”

Hope waved and left the Pokemon Center with a basket in tow. She would just knock on the door under the guise of freshly-ish baked biscuits and take stock of it and how Mrs. Midoriya is doing while her husband isn’t home. Hope hopped on her scooter and went on her way.

Every once in a while Hope would wonder how no one heard the abuse inside a neighbor’s home until she remembered that Vaniville Town was very rural and the houses were a nice distance apart, more of a country town than anything.

From the outside, the Midoriya household looked perfectly normal. It was a nice sized but still affordable house, like every house in Vaniville Town due to the economy. You could see their neighbor’s house, the Bakugou’s, to the left a bit further away. With the same plastic wood plank outside and grey shingles, it was painted a light yellow and the front had a patio with a couple chairs and even a wooden swing for a lovely couple to swing on together.

It was perfect. Innocent. Nothing on the outside to give away the torture that Hope is sure is happening behind that perfectly painted, unchipped white door.

It was a lie.

The pinkette steeled her nerves and lifted her fist to the door. * **knock knock knock** * She waited. And waited. And waited. It was strange. Hope is sure that Mrs. Midoriya is home. Mr. Midoriya should be away at work. Yet she was not answering. Maybe Hope was wrong? No, she couldn’t be. It did not make sense for Mrs. Midoriya to suddenly stop appearing around town or for Izuku to just naturally be that jumpy and for Chip to be that skittish. Hope raised a fist to knock again, determined to end the shadowed abuse!

* **click** *

She froze. The door opened to reveal the thin form of Mrs. Midoriya. Her viridian eyes were cold, dull. She blinked and a fake light seemed to spark in them, a forced smile making its way to her lips. “Nurse Joy!” she greeted overly happy. “To what do I owe the pleasure?” Hope took a deep breath and lifted the basket in her hands. “I brought you and your family some biscuits!” To her surprise, Mrs. Midoriya moved from the entree way and gestured for her to come in. “That is so sweet. I have been meaning to invite you over and thank you.” “Thank you?” Hope walked in. “For paying for Izuku to go to camp.” Mrs. Midoriya led her down the hall. “It means a lot…”

The inside… Hope had expected something, anything, to point to some kind of distress behind the seemingly too-perfect facade. But nothing seemed wrong. There were no dents in the wall, no smell of alcohol that might have been present was either nonexistent or covered by the air freshener, there was no ash tray of a smoking parent, no holes in the wall or glass on the floor. It was surprisingly… normal.

But it was still; empty almost. It left Hope with a sense of unease.

“Please, have a seat in the living room,” Mrs. Midoriya offered. “I will prepare us some tea to go with the biscuits.” Hope smiled. “Thank you.” She passed over the basket and did as told. The couch was well worn, there was a circle stain on the coffee table. A book rested open on the armrest of the loveseat. It was a well-lived house. Hope noticed, though, the picture above the fireplace. It was of Mr. and Mrs. Midoriya outside their house. It looked recent. Hope looked at the pictures on the wall. Mrs. Midoriya, Mr. Midoriya, Mr. and Mrs. Midoriya together, their friends and family, even their Houndoom and Skiploom. Everyone beside… Izuku. The little boy and his Eevee were completely absent from any and all pictures.

“Here we go,” Mrs. Midoriya came in and settled the tray of tea and biscuits on the coffee table, moving over some yarn. “Thank you,” Hope took her cup. “How have you been?” she asked as Mrs. Midoriya sat in the loveseat. “I haven’t seen you around town recently.” Mrs. Midoriya smiled. “We’ve been well,” the woman replied. Small talk, as if nothing was wrong, as if Izuku didn’t run at the smallest sight of fire or jump anytime she stood, or flinched anytime she reached out to him. It was… a normal conversation. Their Houndoom, Smokey, came and rested at her feet even.

When they settled into a comfortable silence, Hope decided to bring the yarn up.

“I noticed the clothes,” she said, gesturing to it. “Aren’t they a bit small for Izuku?” It was like a switch was flipped. Mrs. Midoriya was still smiling, still talking, still happy, but the light in her eyes died. She looked at the crocheted clothes beside the coffee table. “Ah, yes,” she whispered, “me and Hisashi are trying for another child.”

“That’s wonderful!” Hope chirped.

But it wasn’t. She got the feeling that it wasn’t. Mrs. Midoriya turned to her, looking ready to cry but instead she smiled a smile too big for the occasion and said in a voice too happy for simply biscuits and tea: “Thank you! We are very excited.”

There, Hope realized she had overstayed her time. It was time for her to go. She had no proof, she had nothing to use against Mr. Midoriya and nothing to get Mrs. Midoriya and Izuku out. In fact, the family was planning on growing.

She said her goodbyes and left, the door locking behind her.

Hope got on her scooter and looked back at the house. The Midoriya’s were… a normal family. She was so sure that something was wrong. So sure that maybe, just maybe, something was going on behind the scenes but nothing was. Mrs. Midoriya is fine, their house is well kept, their pokemon were kind, and they were soon expecting a child. Hope shook her head and rode away.

Still… Why did it feel as though something was wrong? Was Hope mistaken all along?

____________________________

Izuku is LOVING camp.

After the first incident, they didn’t make him go to the nightly campfires anymore, gratefully. Izuku spent those times in his cabin alone with Chip. It was a bit lonely but he and Chip had fun. They danced and sang and slept and played cards and did whatever they wanted without having to be quiet because the others were at the campfire and Daddy is back at home aaaaaall the way in Kalos!

His stomach, admittedly, hurt a bit. He doesn’t remember a time when he ate this much. Three meals a day? Uhuh uhuh. Three WARM meals a day? Yeah! Izuku thinks he likes camp very much. Like, super duper, really very much! Yesterday was his first whole day. They went on a scavenger hunt and even did a mock battle with their very own pokemon as if they were trainers! Not where they fight themselves, too young for that, but as normal trainers, not hero trainers which Izuku supposes is fine.

They had to stop Izuku though but he doesn’t understand why? They said he was being too violent?

\-----

_ ‘I was just doing what Daddy does!’ _

\-----

Izuku shrugged it off though. Maybe that is what Mommy means by don’t tell anyone about what Daddy does? They all gave him sad looks when he said that too.

The scavenger hunt was really fun too! He went with his cabin team. Izuku expected Kacchan to come and mess them up because Izuku was in their group, or at least someone from his class, but no one did. In fact, Kacchan wouldn’t meet him in the eyes anymore which Izuku doesn’t understand but that’s okay. Mommy says there are some things he doesn’t understand because he’s too little like why Daddy hits her or gets rough when training or why he doesn’t feed them often.

But today Izuku is really, reeeeaaaally excited. It is their third day of camp and they are going a bit into the forest surrounding the camp to look at wild Kanto pokemon up close!

“Stay with the group!” Miss Delia called. “Come on, Izuku! You’re falling behind!” Sana waved him frantically.

\-----

_ ‘Too slow, brat!’ _

_ ‘D- Daddy, wai-! AHHH!!!’ _

\-----

He nodded. “C- coming!” Izuku shakes his head and speeds up. Don’t think about Daddy now. Daddy is far away. Daddy can’t reach me. It is okay. The camp was split between three groups, three cabins in each group. His team, Squirtle Team, is with Pidgey Team and Weedle Team. Despite Sana’s call, he did hang in the back. Some of his classmates were in the Pidgey and the Weedle Team. He didn’t want to be picked on again; not while things were going so well this week.

Izuku had to stand on his tip-tip-tippy toes to see from the back but he made sure to try and get a drawing of the Caterpie one of the camp leaders were showing off in his notebook. “Caterpie is a bug type pokemon. It’s string shot is super sticky and can slow down those it uses it against. Can anyone tell me what Caterpie evolves into?” Izuku was about to raise his hand.

* **rustle** *

He looked over. No one else seemed to hear the bushes moving. Two black eyes and a pair of big pink lips poked out from the bushes. What _pokemon is that?_ It spun around quickly, a white and black fish-like tail flashing out before it disappeared into the bushes again. Izuku blinked. “Correct! Caterpie evolves into Metapod!” He glanced back at the group and then back at the bushes. Izuku closed his notebook. “Vee?” He looked down at Chip and pressed a finger to his lips before turning and following the mysterious pokemon into the bushes, Chip following. 

Izuku tried to keep track of where he was going, he truly did! But… a few twists and turns later… Izuku looked up at the canopy of trees. “U- um…” He looked around himself. Bushes, trees, rocks but no path. “I- I… it was…” Izuku felt tears well in his eye, hands moving to grip his t-shirt.

_I’m lost…_ He wandered a bit more before the tears finally began to fall. _Mommy…_ He sniffed. _I want Mommy! I’m lost! I- I don’t know where we are!_ The sounds of the first echoed around him, crawling bug type pokemon, fluttering flying types. The trees seemed to loom darkly above him getting closer and closer and cl-

* **rustle** *

Izuku and Chip’s heads snapped to the side. The greenette scooped up his pokemon and stumbled back in anticipation. They held their breaths as the sounds got closer. “Where’d you go, Poliwhirl?!” Both jumped when a boy’s head popped out from the bushes. Brown eyes met green.

“... Ah!” he jumped again. The boy pointed at him. “You’re not Poliwhirl!” Izuku tilted his head. He wiped his eyes. “P- Poliwhirl?” The boy fully emerged donning a white tank top and shorts. “Yeah! You know, the circular one with the floppy tail that looks like a tadpole?” The boy looked around. “I was following it and I thought it came this way.” The boy looked over at him before smiling. “Haven’t seen you around here!” Izuku flinched when the boy stuck out his hand. “My name’s Ash! What’s yours?” Izuku swallowed and set Chip down before taking the boy’s hand. “I- it’s Izuku.” “Good to meet you!”

“Pichu!”

The three looked up as a small yellow pokemon with a jagged black tail and pink cheeks jumped from a nearby tree. “Pichu!” Ashe reached up and caught the pokemon. “Did you find it?” The creature shook its head. “Chu…” Ash pouted.

“Erm… I- I could help…” Izuku whispered. The black-haired boy and his Pichu flashed over to them. Izuku jumped when Ash suddenly took his hands, shaking them rapidly. “Really?! Thank you!” “Y- y- y- yeah!” Izuku tried to get out of his body that was shaking from the excited boy. Ash gratefully let him go and pointed to the forest. “I’ll go this way.” He pointed another direction. “You go there! Let’s meet back here!” Izuku froze. W- wait… Me and Chip will be alone again… Izuku reached out. “Wai-” But Ash had already disappeared.

He frowned. “Eevee…” Chip pawed at his leg. Izuku straightened up. “D- don’t worry!” He smiled down at his pokemon just like Mommy does. “Everything will be okay!” And with that, Izuku ran into the bushes the way Ash had pointed. Everything will be okay. Everything  _ will _ be okay.

“P- Poliwhirl!” Izuku called out. “Eevee…?” Chip called too.

Izuku pushed through a few bushes but he had a feeling he was only getting more and more lost and more and more disheartened. _I shouldn’t have left my group! I’m sorry, Chip, I got you lost._ Izuku could feel tears forming again.

“Ow!”

He looked up.

* **sniff** * * **sniff** * * **sniff** *

Someone is… crying? He looked down at Chip. “Vee?” They nod and push through the bushes together. “Wh- who’s there?!” It was a girl’s voice. Breaching the greenery, Izuku came face to face with a blue-eyed girl. They blinked at each other. She had long, dirty blonde hair and pale skin. She looked like-

“D- Deku?”

Izuku flinched. She’s from his class in Kalos. “H- hi…” Izuku glanced down at her leg. It had a scrape on it and was bleeding slightly. “A- are you okay…?” She glared at him. “I’m  _ fine. _ I don’t need your cooties.” _Ah… okay._ Camp was going so well he almost forgot what he was. “Alright…” He twiddled his fingers. “Just, um, I’ll tell them you are h- here so just, um s- stay still.” He saw something flash in her eyes. Something like guilt? No, that couldn’t be right. Everybody in his class hates him. “Come on, Chip,” he waved and turned to leave again.

“Wai- Ah!”

Izuku looked over his shoulder just in time to see her fall again. He habitually ran to her side. “D- d- don’t stand!” She squeezed her eyes shut, tears pricking at the edges. Izuku bit his lip. “I- I know you don’t l- like me but… C- can I… help…?” She looked up in confusion. “You’re not supposed to be this nice.” Izuku tilted his head. “Huh?”

“You- I-” the girl furrowed her eyebrows. “You aren’t like what Katsuki says.” Izuku blanched. “I- I’m- He- What?!” She giggled. “You should see your face!” Izuku blushed and looked down, gripping the edges of his t-shirt.

“Serena.”

Izuku looked up. The girl smiled up at him. She  _ smiled _ at him. Deku. The boy with ‘cooties’ apparently. The boy without an element. The  _ disease _ and yet she smiled at him. “My name is Serena,” she repeated. Izuku’s eyes widened. “I- I’m Izuku!”

_ Will she call me by my name? Or Deku? Please be Izuku. Please be Izuku! _

“I know, silly!” the girl waved him. “Everyone knows you, Izuku.” _MY NAME!_ He beamed at her. “D- do you… need help?” he asked. She nodded. “Yes, please!”

It’s weird, really. _Why is she being so nice? Is this a prank? Can I trust her? What if she turns into Daddy? Daddy was nice too. Now he isn’t. Will she hurt me too? Is she like Kacchan? Kacchan used to be nice to me too. Everybody used to be nice… Maybe… Maybe Serena will be different?_

He pulled off his Squirtle bandanna that was on his arm for his team and knelt by her leg. Just like at the Vaniville Town Pokemon Center, he wrapped her knee up in the cloth. “A- and then Mommy does this,” he waved his hands over the cloth. “Pain, pain go away, come again another day! And… Poof!” Izuku held his hands to the knee. “All better!” Serena giggles. “Thanks, Izuku!” She reached over and pet Chip. “You too, Chip.” She looked up. “Ah! Where’s Fennekin?” He tilted his head. “O- Oh, right, you bonded with Fennekin.” The greenette held out his hand. “Let’s g- go find her together!”

Having a friend… Having a friend is amazing!!! Izuku let Serena hold onto him while they looked for Fennekin. Chip bravely led the way. They chatted about random things. Serena is in the Charmander cabin with Kacchan, apparently, and a few Kanto kids. Her Mom is, or used to be, a Rhyhorn racer. Rhyhorn racing is super popular in Vaniville Town and in the smaller towns of Kalos. Serena isn’t too interested in it apparently but she does train.

“So you really don’t have an element?” she asked. Izuku looked down. “No…” “Or a quirk? Even though you bonded?” Izuku shook his head. He warily glanced over at the girl beside him. “I- is that o- okay?” The blue-eyed girl shrugged. “I guess. Mommy says that it doesn’t matter. She says that the other parents are stupid if they think that.” Izuku blinked. “R- really?” He hated that he sounded so hopeful. Serena smiled. “Yeah!” “B- but you avoid me at kindergarten…” She averted her eyes. “I know… I guess I don’t want to be outcasted too… You… You understand right?”

Izuku’s tongue felt dry. Ah. So that’s how it is. It’s okay as long as no one else sees. Understand? Of course he understands. It’s terrible, really, being the outcast. It hurts but… he doesn’t want Serena to have to go through that either. So he smiles. It’s fake, much like the rest of his smiles are, but it’s there and Serena is only six so she is none the wiser to the pain her words cause Izuku.

“Yeah! No worries!” She smiles. At him. “Thanks, Izuku!”

Thanks, Izuku. Thanks for not hanging out with me. Thanks for letting me ignore you. Thanks for not dragging me down. Thanks for accepting your place as the good-for-nothing, cootie-holding, elementless, quirkless Deku so that I don’t have to be subjected to the same painful, lonely fate as you. ThAnKs, IzUkU.

“Serena?!”

A voice calls from somewhere up ahead. Izuku stumbles by the force of the girl snatching her arm away from him. Izuku stares, shock evident in his viridian eyes, guilt lacing her own blue ones. She limps forward. “I’m here!”

The world feels all the more gray as he watches the girl from behind get found, catching her Fennekin that went to get help. As he watches her ignore him completely on their way back. Chip rubs against his leg. “Vee…” But really, what did he expect? Maybe she is not Daddy or Kacchan. Maybe Serena doesn’t beat him in the dark of their basement or push and burn him on the playground when the teachers aren’t looking. Maybe she doesn’t physically hurt him. But mentally? Emotionally?

“There you are, Izuku!” Miss Delia runs up as they breach the forest. Her face contorts to something sad. “Are you okay?” Empty green eyes look up at the woman.

“Yup!”

The week ended too soon. Every once in a while Izuku would catch Serena’s eye but she would turn away quickly, almost embarrassed. He did become great friends with Toni, Tierno, Sana, and Trevor. Not only them but also Ash! Ash ended up being Miss Delia’s son which Izuku thought was super cool.

“We have to keep in touch! We have to!” Ash bounced on his toes. Izuku nodded rapidly. “O- of course! I- I’ll write!” Or try… _Daddy might not let me. Maybe Nurse Hope would send them?_ Ash nodded rapidly. “Me too!” Ash didn’t care about Izuku’s elementless. He cared less than even Serena did! They hung out as much as they could when their teams were together. Izuku didn’t want to leave. He liked camp. He liked having friends. He liked eating three meals a day. He liked not training. He liked smiling. Tears filled his eyes. “Vaniville Kindergarten! Time to load up!” He doesn’t want to go though… 

“Midoriya.”

He froze at his teacher’s cold tone, a cold tone he hadn’t heard all week. Izuku took a deep breath. _It’s okay. Everything will be okay._

But it isn’t okay. He knows it isn’t okay. No matter how many times Izuku tells himself that, no matter how many times Mommy tells him that, Izuku knows. But he lies to himself, if only to protect himself just a little longer and to cling to this brief week of joy he was blessed with. Only… as the bus pulls away, he is filled with a despair no six year old child should ever feel towards returning to their home. Dread pools in the pit of his stomach. He goes through the rules of riding the bus as Deku. He watches from the window that blocks his freedom from pain. If only he could jump out. If only he could run away, stay in Kanto forever! But he can’t.

The week is over. Izuku is going home.

Izuku doesn’t want to go home.

“Nurse Hope!” he jumps off the bus after the rest of his class. While they all run to greet their parents, he runs into the arms of the pink-haired nurse. “Hey there, Izuku!” Izuku smiles up at her but his grip on her arms is hard. Because he saw him.

Daddy is at the Pokemon Center.

“Hey,  **little man** .”

Izuku doesn’t miss the way Nurse Hope’s grip on him strengthens as well. He can’t breathe. He’s scared to breathe. Daddy is behind him. It’s okay though. _It’s okay. Everything will be okay._ Izuku turns around. A smile is on Daddy’s face but his eyes are so cold, so full of hate and anger. He disobeyed Daddy. _It’s okay. It’s okay. Everything will be okay!_ “H- hi, Daddy!” Playing the part, Izuku runs up and clings to his father’s leg. Confusion flashes in Nurse Hope’s eyes. “I- i- it was so much fun!” He laughs but his laughs feel like ice down Izuku’s spine. “Tell me about it when we get home, okay?”

When we get home. Home. Izuku doesn’t want to go home! _It will be okay. It will be OkAy!_

Daddy takes his hand and it takes everything in Izuku not to wince at the strength of the grip. “Say goodbye to your friends, Izuku.” _Friends?_ The greenette looks around. No one is looking at him. They are actually pointedly ignoring him. Still, Daddy said to say goodbye. Goodbye… “B- bye, everyone!” No one respon-

“Bye, Izuku!” Nurse Hope calls back. Izuku beams at her but it is cut short when he is yanked away.

The walk home is long, purposefully so. Izuku doesn’t look Daddy in the eye, choosing to stare at the oh so intriguing dirt road. * _ **sssssss**_ * He bites his tongue. Daddy’s hand is smoking and in his hand is Izuku’s. It burns… He can feel the way his skin boils. _It will be okay._ Tears prick at his eyes. The white door to his house feels like a cage. Daddy locks it behind them and with it any of Izuku’s dreams of escape. He looks around for Mommy but she is nowhere to be found.

“You,” Daddy’s voice is like venom, “had fun?” Izuku swallowed. “You’ve been a bad boy, Izuku.”

Danger. Izuku’s breathing is unsteady. He has to get away! He struggles against Daddy’s pull. “How dare you,” Daddy opens the basement door in the closet. _No! Please! It was such a good week! I don’t want to go in!_ “Who told you that you could go to that camp?” Izuku stumbled after them as he was dragged down the stairs. “Ah-!” He was thrown to the concrete floor. Izuku skid against the ground. He instinctively curled in on himself.

“You know,” Daddy stood before him, “you caused your mother a lot of pain doing that.”

Izuku’s heart stopped. _Mommy…_ Tears spilled from his eyes. “Let me show you just how much pain you caused her.” _Mommy!_

\-----

_ ‘Shh… it’s okay, Izu. It will be okay.’ _

\-----

_ It’sokayIt’sokayItwillbeokayEverythingwillbeokayIt’sokayIt’sokay. _

Daddy raised his hand, flames licking at the palms.

**_IT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYEVERYTHINGISOKAYEVERYTHINGWILLBEOKAY!_ **

And all Izuku knew was pain.


	4. It Builds Up Over Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things are changing and people are growing up while Izuku's state is going down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How are y'all?

“Mommy?”

Inko halted, hands holding her clothes she had moved to Izuku’s room two years ago. She looked over her shoulder. “Yes, Izu?” “Wh- where are you going?” the little boy looked up at her from his place on the floor. In his hand was a ball he was making out of bandages he had pulled from the first aid kit kept in his room. He tossed it to Chip who jumped and caught it. How sickening that a child’s play toy is made of that which he uses to repair himself after being tortured by his father.

Inko smiled sadly. “I’m moving back to Daddy’s room.” Chip crashed to the floor, both the Eevee’s and Izuku’s head snapping to her. “Y- you’re leaving?!” “Eevee?!” Inko sighed and put down the clothes. She sat on the floor. “Izuku, Chip, come here.” She waited for the small beings to crawl into her arms, taking note of how skeptical they were, how mentally scarred they were already to question getting near even her. Inko scooped the two in her arms. “I’m not leaving you, Izuku, Chip.” The Eevee had become like a second child to her almost. “I’m- Mommy’s- You're-” she swallowed. “We are going to have a new addition to our family soon.” Rainbow and green eyes looked up at her. Inko smiled the best she could.

\-----

_ Inko opened the bathroom door. _

_ ‘Well?’ Hisashi raised an expectant brow. Inko held up the pregnancy test. _

_ ‘I- it’s positive.’ _

\-----

It took another month after Izuku got back from Professor Oak’s Pokemon Summer Camp but, yes, she and Hisashi got pregnant.

“Izuku, do you know what pregnancy is?” The little boy shook his head. “Well,” Inko started slowly, “it means that I am going to have a baby.”

…

…

…

“A- a baby?!” Izuku’s eyes sparkled. “In there?” he poked her rounded stomach. Inko giggled. “Yes, right there.” Izuku, oh sweet innocent Izuku, leaned in. “Helloooooo!” Chip pressed his ear against her belly. Inko ruffled her son’s hair. “She can’t hear you yet, you two.” They looked up at her. “It’s a girl?” Izuku asked. Inko nodded. He grinned and turned to Chip. “A sister! I’m going to be a big brother!”

Inko’s smile faltered along with theirs when the two beings froze. “M- Mommy…” the light in Izuku’s eyes died. “You are going to bring my sister… here? Where Daddy is?” Inko took a shuddering breath. “I don’t have a choice, Izuku. Izuku, Chip, listen.” She pulled the boy closer. “I want you to know that Mommy loves you very much, okay? Very, very much. Some things are going to change around here in a few months, okay? I don’t want you to worry about your sister. She is going to be well taken care of. Daddy won’t hurt her.” Izuku and Chip stared at her with disbelieving eyes. “He won’t,” she pressed. “I promise. I am going to need your help in this, Izuku, Chip. I need you to be good boys, okay?”

She hated the way Izuku paused before immediately saying yes like any naive young child would. Instead, he searched her eyes for any lies. The trust issues that her son had… too many for such a young boy.

“Okay, Mommy…” She smiled and ran her fingers through his green curly locks. “Don’t worry, it will be okay.” Izuku nodded.

“I- it will be okay,” Izuku whispered back. She felt his shoulders shake with repressed tears. “O- okay… It will be okay…”

____________________________

“A sister? How cute!” Serena threw up her hands.

Three months after the summer camp, Izuku thought that she would continue to ignore him. And she did. But one day she pulled him behind the back of the Vaniville Kindergarten building and ever since they have met there in secret until their parents come to pick them up a month later.

“Ooooh! I want a little sister!” Serena kicked her feet. “Say, what’s her name, Izuku?” Izuku shrugged. “Mommy says she and Daddy haven’t chosen yet.” Serena hummed. “Too bad… Arg! I want to meet her so bad!!!” Izuku giggled. “Me too!” They watched as Chip and Fennekin played around.

“Izuku!” He flinched involuntarily. “M- Mommy is here!” He stood quickly. “Come on, Chip.” He pulls out his pokeball and calls Chip back into it before shrinking and pocketing the ball. S- see you tomorrow, Serena!” Izuku left quickly.

On the way home, telling Mommy about his day to deter his mind from the pain that would come when he gets home, Izuku eyes Mommy’s round belly. It’s been a month since Mommy left his room and Izuku found that he hates it. He doesn’t see Mommy much anymore, only when she walks him to and from school. After training, she isn’t there to help him with his bandages anymore but he also can’t be there for her after whatever Daddy does to her though Izuku thinks Daddy doesn’t hurt Mommy anymore because there is less yelling now, still some, but less which he supposes is fine but… Now his room is lonely. He is not allowed out of it ever unless he is training or at school. Izuku had to make a rope from his bed sheets that he hides every time he goes out to ‘get food.’ Izuku doesn’t like these new arrangements but he promised Mommy that he would be a good boy and if he is a good boy everything will be okay because then his sister won’t be hurt and Izuku would be the best big brother ever and protect his little sister!

He and Mommy each take a deep breath before opening the door. Daddy stands there, as always, waiting for them. “Ah, my love, welcome home.” Daddy kisses Mommy on the cheek but Mommy doesn’t like it. Izuku feels the way her hand shakes. “Lunch was great. How about you wait for me in our room?”

_ Don’t go! Mommy, please! _

But she doesn’t have a choice. No matter how much Izuku wishes her to keep holding his hand, he knows that Mommy will be hurt if she doesn’t go. He doesn’t want Mommy to hurt so he lets go first, slipping his hand from her warm, protecting hand. “Of course, Hisashi.” She looks down and offers Izuku an encouraging smile before leaving. Izuku hold’s his breath as he waits for Daddy to angrily grab him. Something new happens today though!

Daddy crouches down in front of him. “Hey,” his voice freezes Izuku’s lungs in place, rejecting air to flow normally, “you’re a smart kid.” Izuku blinks. Daddy is… complimenting him? “You are going to have a little sister soon, you know?” Izuku nodded rapidly. “Y- yeah!” Daddy smiles that smile that makes Izuku think he just lost at something and Daddy won. “You excited?” Izuku nodded sharply. “Yeah!” Daddy chuckled but it doesn’t sound like a happy chuckle.

It sounds victorious. It makes Izuku feel so, so small.

“That’s my little man,” Izuku flinches as Daddy reaches up and ruffles his hair. “Today, I need your help setting up her room, okay? It will help Mommy a whole bunch. You want to help Mommy, right?” Izuku bounced on his toes. “Of course!” “Good.” Daddy stands and leads Izuku to… his room? “D- Daddy?” The man opens it to reveal the hero-themed room. “We can’t use the guest room because, well, it’s for guests.” Daddy walks in and takes one of Izuku’s favorite All Might action figures. He tosses it over his shoulder. “A- Ah!” Izuku rushes to catch it, just barely making it.

“So,” Daddy grinned at him, “why don’t you make yourself useful and pack up all of your things, okay?”

Izuku stares at his father in confusion. “Wh- what?” Heavy steps appear behind him. Izuku gulps and looks up at Smokey. “We are moving you to the basement.” Izuku felt numb. _The basement…? The- the basement?! Where we train?! Daddy’s moving me there?!_ “Smokey will help you,” Daddy continued, moving out of his room. “Let’s say, an hour? I want your whole room packed, got it? I’ll take care of the bed but you take care of the bedding. There are boxes on it already. Get to work.”

\-----

_ ‘Get up, little man.’ _

\-----

Tears poured from the elementless boy’s eyes as Daddy closed the door. Smokey nuzzled his cheek. Izuku fell to his knees.

“I- it’s okay,” the words slipped from his lips. “I- i- it’s okay!” Smokey whined, noticing the boy’s disturbance. “It’s okay.” Izuku pulls his notebooks and coloring books from the shelves. “It’s okay.” He takes down each of his figures and gathers his pokemon plushies. “Everything is okay.” He stands on Smokey’s back to take down his posters. “I- it’s okay.” He rips his bedding from his bed. “Everything…” He boxes up his clothes, stashing his protein bars at the bottom of that box.

The doors open.

... is okay!

Izuku can handle a lot. He can handle Daddy’s fire and Smokey’s smoke. He can take the punches and kicks and the never ending push-ups and sit-ups. The screams and broken bottles and Daddy when he drinks that brown stuff that makes him crazy. But somethings he can only stand because he doesn’t have to deal with the bad all of the time. His room is his safe space, the one place he can go away from Daddy and away from Kacchan. Now?

Izuku stares up the staircase. Daddy waves. “You did good. I’ll be back later, okay? Don’t forget. You are helping Mommy. It’s okay, right?” With one last wave, the metal door was closed. Izuku’s blood roared in his ears. “Don’t…” He bolted up the stairs just in time to hear the boxes being pushed over the door up. “Don’t leave me down here!” Izuku pounded on the metal. “Please! Daddy! Let me out! DaDdY!!!” Izuku’s hand fell numbly to his side. “Don’t- * **sniff** * -leave me…” He turned around.

It’s dark, only a few dim lights dangling from the ceiling. His footsteps echoed off of the concrete walls. It’s cold, the air conditioning rumbling in the corner opposite of his new “room.” The floor felt like ice on his feet.

Izuku’s new room consisted of a thinner mattress that lay flatly on the floor, his old one being saved for his soon-to-be sister in what? Four years down the road? His bedding is too big now for it and draped off of it. On the gray walls near to the floor because he is too short to hang them higher are his posters. A bit to the side sat his coloring books and notebooks. His backpack lay against the edge of his mattress. Beside his mattress sits Chips dog bed. He places his figurines here and there and his plushies on his bed and stashed his protein bars under it. He placed his clothes carefully a bit away from the foot of his bed, trying to make the area feel as boxy and room-like. The only thing is… there were no walls.

No. Now his safe space no longer exists. Now Izuku has to look out at the place of his torture every time he looks up. He has to relive it all over again and again and again. When he has to use the bathroom? The tiny bathroom is all the way on the other side of the basement so he has to actually pass by all of the equipment. OH! And don’t forget the blood stains because those are there too!

Izuku can take a lot. He is surprisingly resilient. At least he had some kind of freedom. Now? Now Izuku stares out at Daddy’s torture dungeon and Izuku is truly his captive. Now there is no escape.

\-----

_ Daddy smirks. ‘It’s okay, right?’ _

\-----

No. It’s not okay. It’s never been okay. Every punch and kick and burn. Every scream and yell and tear. None of them were ever okay.

But Izuku won’t tell himself that.

Because surely, if he just says it enough, if he just rocks here back and forth and back and forth with tears pouring down past his broken smile that is plastered on his face, if he says is long enough  _ surely _ it will come true. Right? Mommy says so, so it has to be true. 

“It’s okay… It’s okay… Everything will be okay…”

____________________________

“Y- you what…?”

Inko stared at her husband in shock. Hisashi looked up from the book he was reading on the couch. A new development with her pregnancy was that Hisashi stopped abusing her. Mostly. He allowed her out of their room. Now it was as if it was completely normal, just like it used to be when they first got married with only minimal slapping. But it isn’t. There is the underlying threat if she tries to refute him that Hisashi will turn on her like a switch flipped. And Izuku was still locked in his room guarded by Smokey but now-

“I said, I moved your brat to the basement,” Hisashi looked unimpressed. “You’re pregnant, not deaf.” Inko blanched. “Y- you can’t be serious! Hisashi he’s six!” She quickly snapped her mouth shut when Hisashi stood. 

Inko hates the way she shakes when Hisashi gets close like this. He runs his hand along her jawline, the way it sends a shiver down her spine and fear to her heart. “Oh, my love,” she hates him calling her that, it feels so fake, “why are you defending him? We are about to have our daughter, Inko. She is what matters now.” Inko glared at him. “I- Izuku m- m- matters too.” An unconvincing argument with the way her voice betrays her. Hisashi’s eyes harden. “You still love that disgrace? After you cheated on me?!”

“I- I didn’t! H- Hisashi, you know I wo-”

* **SLAP** *

Inko stumbled back from the sheer force of the hit, falling on her rear. “Inkooooooo,” Hisashi sighed. “You know I don’t want to do this to you.” _Liar…_ “It’s not like I’m killing him. I’m just toughening him up a bit. The world’s a cruel, cruel place.” Inko doesn’t lift her head to look at him when he crouches before her. She bites her tongue when his rough hand grabs her face, squeezing it and yanking it forward, forcing her to look him in the eyes. It burns. She can feel his palms heating up. “It’s a shame that he had to be born to you. Maybe if you had been a better wife this wouldn’t have happened.”

Inko squeezed her eyes shut as she was pulled forward, Hisashi slamming her lips forcefully against hers. It wasn’t a loving kiss. No. He was breathing smoke down her lungs. She couldn’t breathe! Only when she finally choked did the man let her go. Inko collapsed to the floor, clutching her chest, coughing harshly as smoke escaped between her lips.

“You’ll do better with our daughter, right?” Hisashi stood. “Come, my love, let’s go out.” With tears in her burning eyes, Inko looked up at his extended hand. “We have to go get stuff for our daughter’s room! Isn’t that exciting?” Knowing better than to ignore his hand, Inko shakily reached up and accepted it. She yelped when Hisashi pulled her up only to trap her between his arms. “I haven’t taken you out in so long,” he mused. Not on a date? No. As if a dog on a walk. His little pet to keep tethered by a leash. Inko felt her humanity being stripped from her, the same she did when Hisashi used to abuse her in the bedroom before she got pregnant. Treat her body as his own for his own amusement and pleasure. And Inko could do nothing about it because if she did?

The little boy in the basement would be buried six more feet underground. Dead.

So she let Hisashi strangle her with a metaphorical collar, tie her to his side with the metaphorical leash, and whip her with the literal whip if she didn’t behave. She’d behave. She had to behave. For her safety, for Izuku’s safety, and for the safety of her poor daughter to be born in a few months.

But that doesn’t mean she had to like it.

_______________________________

Izuku learned real quick that basement living was a whole lot worse than living upstairs.

Food, for instance. It was so scarce he almost thought it was an illusion. He had no windows to crawl out of to go ‘get food’ from the PokeMart. His spare stash of protein bars was wearing thin. He would only get fed once every two or three days and even then it was after he woke up on the hard concrete floor after training with a bowl of cold rice next to him and even then he would share it with Chip. Water he would have to drink from the sink in the bathroom. Sometimes, however, Izuku would be reminded that, while he does feel a bit betrayed by Mommy for leaving him, she is still on his side. A week into his living in the basement he found a can of spaghetti loops under his pillow hidden from Daddy! Izuku knew it was a huge risk for Mommy to do that and yet she kept doing it twice a week. 

Once there was even a chocolate bar under there! A bit melted but that was fine.

But… Izuku also doesn’t get to sneak out to Nurse Hope anymore… He wonders if she misses him. He doubts it.

It was cold in the basement too. Like, super duper cold! The only heat he felt was from Daddy’s or Smokey’s flames or when he bundled himself and Chip in as many layers of clothes and blankets as possible. Not only that but there was also no warm water or shower so he had to use the guest wash clothes and the cold sink water in the bathroom to wipe himself down. Speaking of which, he’s running out of soap soon…

Then there was the light. Ooooooh the light! It’s so dark in the basement even with the few dim lights dangling from the ceiling. By the time he is let out for school, the light above ground burns his eyes. Not to the extent that Daddy’s smoke does but for a good few minutes while walking to school with Mommy he has to squint at the ground so the sun light doesn’t blind him. He ran into a tree once doing that but now he knows where that one is so he doesn’t anymore and once he gets to school his eyes have mostly adjusted.

But the worst part? Waking up.

Izuku hates waking up and immediately seeing the training equipment. The instant his eyes see the place of his torture it sends him into a frenzy that he can’t explain. It’s like the pain and dizziness he first felt when at the Pokemon Gardens two and a half years ago. He’s scared, petrified. It’s so hard to breathe and the walls feel like they are closing in on him and his heart pounds so violently and painfully in his chest that he feels it might just BURST! It takes him a good few minutes of this to realize that Daddy isn’t coming. He hates it. He hates having to see that place! It’s scary and reminds him of scary things!

It’s been five months now since he was moved down here. Izuku supposes that not  _ everything _ is terrible. Smokey guards the door up top and on top of the metal door is a big box of weights so Izuku can’t get out but Smokey sometimes nudges it over a bit and taps on the metal door. Izuku hears that and climbs up to the top of the stairs and taps back. He, Chip, and Smokey have somewhat of a secret language now!

Izuku also got better at bandaging his own wounds. He’s super excited for when he gets to help Nurse Hope again and he can show her that he can do stitches like she can!

It’s reeeaaally painful doing stitches Izuku decided but if he doesn’t bleed out that doesn’t matter now does it? Hmmmm. That sounds suspiciously like Mommy just them. Izuku giggles to himself at the thought before wincing and threading the needle through his skin once more.

Daddy had been really mean today. He made Smokey use Scratch on him! Like the actual move! Smokey’s claws are so much sharper when he uses it. He hissed as he pulled the thread taunt. “Eevee…” Chip whined from beside him. Izuku let out a tired chuckle. “I- it’s okay, Chip! Erm… c- can you help?” Chip nodded, all too happy to help its wounded trainer. It bit through the string and held it delicately under the tip of one claw so that Izuku could tie it.

“There! All done!” Izuku wiped the dried blood on his shoulder surrounding the wound.

* **Ca** - **Chunk** *

Izuku and Chip froze. That was the sound of the door opening. Why? Why?! Daddy already hurt them today so why was he coming back down?! Izuku grabbed Chip, newly done, poorly done, stitches ripping a bit painfully, and scrambled back into the corner his bed was in. Daddy never entered his ‘room’ for some reason. Izuku had a box-like layout he made with his clothes and books to make it feel more roomy. It was like some sort of unspoken rule. Of course, Daddy would stare at him just outside it until Izuku ‘came out’. And Izuku does because if he doesn’t then it hurts more. But now Daddy is coming again!

Izuku and Chip hissed, averting their eyes as the light flooded in from the open door. He could feel them both shaking but refused to get up. Daddy was hurried, rushed. Why? He heard the feet stop just outside his ‘room.’ “Izuku,” Daddy whispered in an oddly soft voice. The greenette peeked up at him. “I need something from you, okay?” Izuku nodded. Better to just say yes. It hurts more if he doesn’t. Daddy pointed to the red blanket Izuku had around his legs. “Your sister is coming today, I need something soft to wrap her in.” Something soft as in the softest, warmest blanket Izuku has? His blankie?

Izuku doesn’t want to give it up. Izuku loves his blankie! Why can’t they go get a different one? She already has his room!

Daddy noticed his hesitation. “Izuku.” One word. One cold, threatening word was all it took for Izuku to strip himself of the blanket and run across the cold, hard floor, handing it to his father. Hisashi grinned and ruffled his hair. It felt fake, possessive. Izuku didn’t like Daddy’s hair ruffles anymore. “Thanks, little man.” He didn't like being called 'little man' anymore... And with that, the man was gone.

Izuku stared at the metal door from the bottom of the wooden stairs blocking his way to freedom. To light. To fresh air. To food. To Mommy. His teeth ground against each other, fists shaking by his sides.

_ Why? What’s so special about her? I don’t even know her name and I have to give her my blankie? Why do I have to live down here?! Let me out! I hate this! _

He didn’t notice the way the air around him got hotter.

_ Everyone at school says that their Daddy plays catch with them but with a ball, not their Daddy plays with their Pokemon using him as a ball! Will Daddy play catch with her? _

In the back of his head he heard Chip whining in pain.

_ What’s next? No Mommy, no food, no light. Now what? She gets to have food and light and Mommy! Why does he hate me? You know what…? You know what?! _

It was something different, a feeling in Izuku he only feels before he has a spasm. It was anger but something new. Anger, resentment, fury…

“ **I HATE DADDY TOO!** ” he screeched.

And it echoed off the walls of the basement. It racked through the house above. The empty house above. They left. They left and Izuku was all alone with his stewing anger. He couldn’t see the way his hair blazed with flames and he was too blinded by anger to see the smoke escaping his lips. Izuku took a smoldering step forward towards the step. “Ee… VEE!” Red eyes widened as he was tackled to the ground. Finally it hit: the pain. THE PAIN!

Izuku  _ screeched _ . He gasped, dropping to his knees and clawing at his chest. The bond mark burned. It hurt so bad! It felt like Daddy’s flames were swallowing him whole. His body jerked in every which way but he couldn’t stop it. The flames in his hair died, the last of the smoke in his lungs vented out, and his red eyes faded to green. After what felt like forever, it began to subside leaving nothing but a heaving green-haired boy with his Eevee pressing its head against his chest.

* **sniff** * * **sniff** *

Izuku wiped at his eyes, tears now streaming down his face. Why? Was this his punishment for getting angry? Did Daddy put some evil spell on him? Could he never truly be free even when he was alone?

Alone… * **sniff** * * **sniff** *

“I- I- I want M- Mommy…”

____________________________

Izuku is a resentful child. Nine years old, he’s angry at a lot of the world. He’s angry at his father. Dad abuses him physically and mentally, abuses Mom mentally and when his little sister, Inha, isn’t looking, physically as well. He’s angry at Mom too, though. He doesn’t understand why she suddenly turned her back on him. Why she left him to fend for himself in that basement while Inha got all the love. He’s angry at Inha. Only two and a half years old, she’s gotten more love than Izuku ever felt in his life. Over the two years since her birth, Izuku has found more of his belongings missing when he comes home from school and when he comes home and is walked back to the basement, he often will see them in her hands.

But he doesn’t hate Mom and Inha as much as he fears for them. He is so scared that Dad will do something to the precious black-haired little girl. He knows it isn’t her fault and his anger is misplaced but he is only nine. Nine with the hardened heart of a ninety-nine year old war veteran. He walks on eggshells with Dad. Every time they train and he tries to fight back he is reminded:

\-----

_ ‘What’s with that look in your eyes, brat? You wouldn’t want me to hurt your sister would you?’ _

\-----

And:

\-----

_ ‘Remember what I did to your mother when you disobeyed me last time?’ _

\-----

It scares Izuku out of his skin. He feels like he is going crazy. At school, all of the kids avoid him. Something happened after his confrontation with Bakugou at Professor Oak’s Pokemon Summer Camp almost three years ago. After that, the kids didn’t bully him, they simply ignored him completely. Even Serena when they weren’t alone. That… hurt. He would never tell her, but he didn’t understand why she of all people would be so two-faced.

Then again, so was Mom.

But Izuku still loved Mom. He would kill for Mom. Izuku hates Dad for separating them but then again, he hates Dad for a lot of things.

But he can’t change them. If he tries, Dad might hurt Inha or Mom or both and he won’t allow that. He can’t allow that. Inha’s too innocent. Sure, when she was born Mom stopped walking him to and from school. Dad would wake him up with a cold bucket of ice water standing from outside his ‘room.’ Izuku supposes that it's fine that way. It’s better that way. For Mom at least. And for Inha. They have each other now. Izuku would suffer in silence for them. He had Chip and that was enough. And he supposes he  _ does _ still have Serena for about fifteen minutes after school, both in fourth grade now.

Izuku is resentful and angry though and things are building up in him he can’t explain and maybe the rebellious teenage phase hits him a bit sooner than others.

…

…

…

“Come ooooon, Izuku!” Serena tugged at his arm. “You never want to hang out after school!” The green-haired boy swallowed a sigh.

_ Well You never want to hang out  _ during _ school. _

“All of our classmates are talking about it, you know?” she pouted. Izuku glanced over her. ‘It’ as in the apparent haunted mansion in the only wooded area around Vaniville Town in between it and Santalune City and Aquacorde Town. Truthfully, Izuku really wanted to go. The little kid in him pleaded at him to, just for once in his life, be a kid again. His brain told him that he should have left for home five minutes again and Dad would already be pissed for him being out this long anyway.

What? Did he think Izuku would go to the police? Like they’d do much anyway. Adults can screw it. 

“Serena, you know I can’t do that,” he sighed. “I have to look after Inha.” Ha, what a laugh. No, no he didn’t have to. In fact, Izuku doesn’t remember even saying a single word to the toddler in her whole two and a half years of life, courtesy of his father, thank you very much. Taking care of his little sister was just a really good excuse. Serena waved him. “I am sure your Mom can take care of her or something for an extra hour or so.”

Izuku contemplated it. He really did. So many things could go wrong. When he got home he’d have hell to pay for it and Izuku is almost out of burn cream. Izuku stared up at the sky. _Dad’s gonna ‘train’ me whether I go or not. Honestly, screw him._ Izuku stood sharply. “Are you leaving?” Serena asked, already pulling out her pokeball to call back Fennekin. “Yeah, we are going to the haunted mansion, right?” he looked over at her and smirked. Serena, Fennekin, and Chip all stared at him before the girl’s face lit up. She punched the sky. “Yes! Let’s go!” Izuku chuckled a bit before following the already racing girl.

“Vee?” Chip ran alongside him. Izuku glanced down and met his pokemon’s worried eyes. “I- It’ll be okay,” he whispered. Izuku cast one last glance at the town. “I hope…” He turned and followed Serena into the woods.

Now, when Serena said mansion, Izuku was thinking something more of like a child exaggerating and probably a house-sized structure. Not a big, Giant, ENORMOUS (*ahem* child exaggeration) mansion. It was big and tan with giant windows and a big entrance with an overhang that had three ramps up it even though there were only two doors. BIG doors. It was overgrown with moss and vines and there were cracks in the stone. In the light it looked ominous enough. In the dark? Izuku shivered. He didn’t even want to think about how it would look then. Still…

“Weren’t you the one who said that you wanted to come here?” He raised an eyebrow, glancing down at the girl cowering behind him, gripping his arm in a death hold. It hurt. Not because she was strong but more because he had a pretty nice-sized burn under his sleeve right where she was clinging too. Izuku’s made a living, literally, out of not showing his pain though. Serena sweatdropped. “R- right! Let’s just… you go first?” Izuku met eyes with Chip. He smirked and nodded. “Alrighty, lets go then.”

Serena didn’t let go all the way to the door. Izuku raised his fist to it. ***knock** **kno** -* * **creeeeeaaaaaak** *

“Eep!” “Fen!” “Eevee!” Serena, Fennekin, and Chip all hid behind him.  _ What am I? Your shield?  _ He swallowed thickly.  _ That was kind of creepy though… _ Izuku suddenly had a new set of misgivings more than about heading home later tonight. This mansion gave him the creeps. “Y- you sure you want to go in?” he whispered. Serena hummed. “T- totally! I- it’s not like I’m scared or anything!” Izuku rolled his eyes and led the way in.

* **SLAM** *

They all spun around. The door shut itself. Heart ramming in his chest, Izuku dashed forward, pulling at the handles. It’s locked. It’s locked!

\-----

* **bang** * * **bang** * * **bang** *

‘Daddy! Let me out! P- Please! I’ll do better!’

* **bang** * * **bang** * * **bang** *

‘Daddy!!!’

\-----

“-ku? Izuku? Helloooo?”

His hand snapped out, grabbing the wrist of the hand before him and twisting. “Ah!” Serena fell to the floor before him, arm up in an awkward position. “I- Izuku, you're hurting me!” Green eyes widened. Izuku dropped her wrist. He stumbled back, staring at the girl in shock as she clutched her wrist on the floor.

\-----

_ ‘D- Daddy, your h- hurting me!’ _

\-----

“S- sorry!” he bowed deeply, overgrown green locks falling to cover his face. Serena moved her wrist a bit. “It’s fine.” She stood. “Don’t worry about it, k?” Izuku stood upright but he kept his eyes downcast. Chip rubbed against his leg knowingly. Serena pushed on one of the windows. “Locked too? M- Maybe this mansion… eats people?” A shiver went down his spine. Serena covered her mouth. “S- sorry! I shouldn’t have said that!”

\-----

_ ‘Please!’ _

\-----

Izuku didn’t like this and he knew Chip didn’t either. He wrung his hands together. He needed out. Soon. Or, like, now. “L- let’s look around,” he suggested. “Right.” Izuku once again led the way up the giant staircase in the middle of the surprisingly clean-titled room.

* **bzzt** *

The lights came on. “A- ah… Izuku… Chip… Either one of you did that?” Serena asked, holding Fennekin to her chest. Izuku forced a smile on his face. “N- nope! S- surely it’s motion sensored?” Chip nodded furiously.

Motion sensored? In Vaniville Town? Unlikely.

They took the right hallway. So many doors. So many unseen traps that could be lurking for them behind every closed door. Only way to find out… Izuku reached forward and opened one. Four heads popped in around the corner: Izuku’s Serena’s, Chip’s, and Fennekin’s. A long room with a long table and on the far wall? A portrait of an old woman in a red gown. “L- ladies first?” he grinned. Serena and Fennekin shook their heads widely. Izuku gulped and walked in. “H- hello…?” No reply.

“S- say,” Serena whispered, “doesn’t that lady look like she is staring at us?” Izuku and Chip whipped around to her. “S- sorry!” she slapped her hands over her mouth. It wasn’t like she was wrong. Izuku glanced at the picture.

* **BANG** * * **BANG** * * **BANG** *

The four jumped. “Eevee?!” “What was that?!” Serena latched onto Izuku again. He raised a finger. “A- ah! It must just be one of those old clocks, right? Telling us the time, RiGhT?!” The three all too happily agreed with his suggestion. Serena grabbed his hand and pulled him to the door. “N- next room!”

They walked down the halls tensely, none of them daring to make a noise. Chip stopped, grabbing his shoe lace in its mouth and pulling to make it stop. “Vee!” Izuku looked down. “What is it, Chip?” Serena gasped. “L- look!” Right before them, in the middle of a dimly lit hallway, was a small grey, cat-like creature with folded ears, standing straight up. The *ahem* trespassers froze as it looked their way, eyes glowing in a teal light. A ball floated beside it up… and down… up… and do-

“Espurr.”

They all jumped at the sudden new voice. A kid. A boy walked out of the hallway to the right of the ominous creature. The boy was their age with gravity-defying purple hair. “-ost…” Serena whispered before practically yelling. “Ghost!” Izuku jumped. “No way! It’s actually haunted!” The kid tilted his head. “Fennekin!” With that, they all fled back down the hall in the opposite direction.

Izuku has never been more terrified in his life! This was so much different than when Dad first beat him or when he got drunk because this was unexplainable! Sure, there are ghost pokemon but humans?! It’s unheard of!

Taking a sharp turn, Izuku practically flew down the staircase to the front door of the mansion. “Wait!” He screeched to a halt, Serena, Chip, and Fennekin all crashing into him, dominoing them to the ground. Their heads whipped up. Before them was the gho-

“I- I’m not a ghost!”

Behind the purple-haired kid was the pokemon from before. Serena got up first. “Th- that’s just what a ghost would say!” The boy shook his head and held out his arm. “No, see? You can touch me.” Izuku and Serena met eyes. He swallowed and took a step forward. Izuku leaned back a bit skeptical as he held out his own hand and tapped it against the boy’s skin. Actual skin. Like, there was warmth and everything. He let out a deep breath of relief eliciting the same response as his friends. “Geeze!” Serena let out. “You scared the bejeezus out of us!” The purple-haired not-ghost looked down. “S- sorry… Espurr,” he picked up the cat-like pokemon, “likes to play games on people like that to defend our base.”

“Base?” Izuku asked. The boy before them gestured around them to the mansion. “Here. It’s where I hang out most days after school.”

“Ah…” Izuku blinked. “School? I haven’t seen you in school. What’s your name?” The boy perked up. It sort of reminded Izuku of the way he did when Serena first called him by his real name. “H- Hitoshi! Shinsou Hitoshi! I live in Santalune City so…” “That’s so far! So that’s why we haven’t seen you,” Serena mused. She held out a hand. “I’m Serena!” Hitoshi looked at it almost shocked. “Y- you aren’t afraid of me?”

Ah… this is a similar sight. He knew Serena thought it too. Why? Because she had that same guilty face she always had when she met eyes with Izuku at school and looked away.

“No? Why would we be?” Izuku asked. Hitoshi bit his lip. “I- I’ll just tell you now because I know you’ll run away…” “Well I doubt that but go ahead.” Hitoshi looked shocked at his bluntness but Izuku was a no cutting corners kind of kid. “I- I have a villainous quirk!” the violet-eyed boy spit out.

…

…

…

“At least you have one.”

Hitoshi’s head snapped up. Serena cringed at his words. “Y- you-” Izuku, for the first time in his life, smirked at his own quirklessness and jabbed a thumb to his chest. “Yup! You’re lookin' at a bonafide elementless human!” Chip yipped indignantly. “So don’t go off saying we will run away. I am the  _ king _ of having people run from me.”

This caused Hitoshi to giggle. “S- sorry! That was just so unexpected!” Izuku saw Serena glance at him from the corner of his eye sadly. Izuku grit his teeth under the guise of a smile.  _ What’s with that look? I get it okay? _ Izuku knew she only hung out with him out of pity. If she truly wanted to be his friend then she would at least say  _ hi _ at school. “So, a base, huh?” Serena asked, walking forward with her hands innocently behind her back. “I guess this could work.” The two boys looked at each other, the pokemon doing the same, before all five looked at the girl. “Huh?” he and Hitoshi said together. Serena spun around with a finger up, winking. “I mean, since we are friends now this can be our secret hideout!”

“Y- you still want to be my friend?!” Hitoshi asked, stunned. “I- I haven’t even told you my quirk yet!”

Izuku chuckled. Ah, how could he be so stupid. Of course Serena is his friend. She just has a way of doing that. He couldn’t blame her for how she acts at school. Izuku’s the bad friend here. The dirty-blonde girl rolled her eyes. “Of course, silly!” Izuku slung his arm around Hitoshi’s shoulders. “We don’t care about none of that, k?” Tears pricked at Hitoshi’s eyes. He bowed deeply. “Th- thank you so much!”  Maybe it wasn’t such a terrible idea to come here after all even if it did mean hell to pay at home. Speaking of which…

Izuku looked out the window and paled. Chip whined from beside him. The sun was already going down. “I- I’ve got to go!” Serena and Hitoshi looked over at him. “U- um, Inha’s waiting!” Hitoshi tilted his head. “His baby sister,” Serena informed their new friend. “Sorry, Hitoshi, we’ll see you soon! Don’t forget to come back!”

Izuku bolted out the now-unlocked door, Chip, Serena, and Fennekin hot on his trail. He was screwed. He was so screwed! Chip too, oh this had been such a bad idea!

“See you tomorrow, Serena!” He waved, hastily giving his partings at the school before dashing off without waiting for her response. Izuku and Chip ran but they slowed near the PokeMart. After today’s stunt? Izuku didn’t doubt that Dad wouldn’t be feeding him for at least three days and Mom wouldn’t have the chance to sneak him down some food. Izuku met his eyes with Chip. They hadn’t stolen in so long but… desperate times call for desperate measures.

Since it has been a while, it took Izuku a bit to pick the lock but one he got in, it was smooth sailing. He hates this, truly, but he also hates starving so what can you do? It’s called being morally graaaaay. Stashing a couple cans of soup and a few boxes of protein bars in his backpack from the storage room, Izuku was just about to leave before he popped in a few suckers as well before he and Chip booked it back home.

“Eevee!” Chip shook his head. Izuku smiled sadly. “You know Dad will just make you come out anyway, Chip. It’s better that Inha doesn’t see you. Dad would take you from me too if she got attached. The Eevee looked downcast but nonetheless tapped his forehead against the pokeball Izuku had held out. Izuku sighed and shrunk it, pocketing the ball. He took the last few strides to the front of his house and… opened the front door.

* **BAM** *

Dad’s smoking hand reached out for him and Izuku’s head was immediately slammed into the wall and,  _ Oh, I guess Inha’s asleep already. _

Izuku doesn’t remember much after that. He probably had a concussion from the initial hit. But he remembers what matters. He remembers the pain. He remembers the fire and the way it melted his skin. He remembers the claws and the way they tore through his flesh. He remembers the insults and the screaming, a distant bottle being broken in the background before being broken over his head and the way the lingering alcohol made the cuts sting. But before all of that, he remembers being dragged down the hall to the basement when he first got home, past Mom and Dad’s room. He remembers the door opening and seeing Mom in the doorway and though he knows that she probably didn’t want to let it happen…

Izuku remembers her doing nothing as Dad opens the hallway closet, pushes over the box, opens the door to the basement, and throws Izuku down all under her watchful eye.

When he came two, everything hurt. Dad had left him a new first aid kit to bandage himself up but one could not simply patch up the extent of what his so-called father did to him. Now, in the dark of the basement, Izuku sits on his worn bed in his too-small clothing with his single thin too-short blank and numbly looks at the single All Might poster he has left holding the single pokemon plushie he has left, a Pikachu. He closed his eyes but they hurt to keep closed. He opened them but they hurt to stay open. He tried to move but his body screamed in protest. All this because he went out and yet Izuku couldn’t help but think…

He’d like to go out again.

But… he wasn’t let out in the morning for school. He doesn’t have a clock down in the basement but he figured that at some point it had been too long for him to be down there. He wasn’t let out that morning and that afternoon Dad 'trained’ with him again and he wasn’t let out the next day either and then it was the weekend and suddenly Izuku was very grateful for the ignorant PokeMart employees because that food was all he had. Never once did Dad feed him.

It was terrifying.

____________________________

Serena bit her lip.

She hadn’t seen Izuku today at school. Sure, she doesn’t actively look for him at school, she can’t let herself be seen with him, but she does notice him here and there. But Izuku wasn’t there. He seemed scared about something yesterday when they left the haunted/not-haunted/definitely-still-haunted mansion. She can’t help but worry!

She would just ask him tomorrow. Surely everything was alright!

But he wasn’t there the next day either. Hitoshi asked about him but Serena couldn’t give answers and she felt bad. She was avoiding a friend at school wishing that if only he didn’t come to school then they could be friends somewhere else and it wouldn’t have to be so awkward and she wouldn’t have to feel so guilty but now he really wasn’t at school and it felt so wrong!

“Helloooo? Earth to Serena?” Jia frowned when Serena jumped, bringing herself back to reality. “S- sorry, girls! What were we talking about?” Serena scratched the back of her head. They rolled their eyes. “We were just saying how lucky we are.” “Lucky?” Jia pointed to the empty seat in the back of the class.  “Yeah. That Deku isn’t here.”  Serena’s smile stretched. Ah… she hated this. This was her friend they were talking about. “He always acts so stuck up.” “Yeah, no one even talks to him.” “Where does that elementless kid get off his high rocker?” “High rocker?” “My Mom told me that it means…”

Serena tuned them out, only giving noncommittal hums.

“His eyes look so dead.” “I wish he were.” “If I were elementless, I would too.”

Serena stood sharply, startling her friends. “S- sorry! Bathroom break!” She skedaddled off. Serena all but slammed her stall door closed.  _ Where do  _ they  _ get off their ‘high rockers’, huh? They don’t know Izuku! Sure, he might seem bored and uncaring but you’ve never seen his eyes light up when he talks about heroes or the way his smile can light up a room. You don’t know anything about him! _ Serena wiped her tears that she had begun to cry.  _ Then again, do I have any room to speak? I never speak with him at school either. I’m no better than the rest of them… _

_ Izuku, I hope you’re okay. _

____________________________

Things began to change. Izuku began to not care. He cared about his Mom and his sister enough to come home at night. He knew if he didn’t then they would suffer for it. They were the only things keeping him at home. Other than that, Izuku began a new routine.

After school, he and Serena would go to the mansion where they spent a good few hours playing with Hitoshi. Hitoshi was only there every day of every other month because his parents were divorced and he was only at his mom’s house in Aquacorde Town every other month, the other months being with his dad in Santalune City. At the mansion it was the only time he felt like a kid again. Hitoshi ended up having a brainwashing quirk which made things a lot clearer to Izuku and Serena about the way he acted when they first met. After parting ways with Serena at the school, Izuku didn’t go back home. No, he went to the Pokemon Center. Turns out, Nurse Hope did miss him and she welcomed the nine year old back with open arms every night, even if it was just for tea. She never pressed for answers about his sudden disappearance, only speaking highly of the future, a future Izuku wasn’t so sure he had every time he went home. Every time he returned home, the beating was worse than the last.

He felt so small. So scared and weak under Dad’s glare.

Ah, that was another reason he returned home. He was petrified of his father. When he was out of the house it was so easy to put on a brave act and say that another hour later would be fine but when he was there, locked in that basement with nothing but him, Chip, Dad, and Smokey? That was another story. It was like he couldn’t move. All of his joints locked in place, only moving on reflex to try and dodge the next roar of flames.

His mental state outside worked hard to keep its mask up and Izuku worked hard to keep it that way. It didn’t matter if he put it down or not. No adult would help him anyway and his friends couldn’t do anything.

Izuku _hates_ adults. They are all liars, even Mom and Nurse Hope but they are slightly less bad adults so he can tolerate them. Chip hates them too. Resentment in him just builds and builds and builds and then-! He goes to the mansion and it’s as if it were never there in the first place. Izuku loves the mansion. It’s his favorite place in the whole wide world and holds his favorite people under one roof: Serena and Hitoshi. Mom and Inha are, like, three and four on his list of favorite people and Nurse hope is five. Yes, he still loves his Mom but he can’t help the anger he holds towards her. After staying and relieving stress at the mansion, Izuku feels guilty for being mad at her. It’s not like it’s her fault. She has to look after Inha. But Izuku feels betrayed. Is there anyone…? Anyone who won’t betray him? He hates that he thinks that when he looks at Serena and Hitoshi but in all honesty, Serena still avoids him at school and that… that hurts. He only sees Hitoshi here but he knows it would be just as easy for Hitoshi to not come back one day. It’s only a matter of time.

It’s best to keep his smile close but his heart distant.

“Sit! Sit!” Eleven-year-old Serena pulls them into the long table room and forces the boys and pokemon to take seats. It’s funny how the large painting of the old lady in there doesn’t even scare them anymore. In fact, they even named her.

\-----

_ ‘Lisa!’ _

_ ‘Lisa?’ the two boys looked at Serena confused. ‘Why Lisa?’ _

_ She shrugged. ‘Dunno.’ _

\-----

Ah, to be simple minded as a child. Izuku likes it here. Now eleven years old he has a place where he can truly act his age, laugh like a kid, and smile without any need for reservation, aside from his own mental turmoil.

Serena whipped out her phone. She recently got one. Same for Hitoshi. Izuku didn’t have one, though the rest of the kids his age did as one can imagine why. “I want to introduce you two to the world of Pokemon Contests!” She started a video. It was of a girl and her pokemon dancing together and making some amazing special effects with their pokemon moves and the girls quirk. It was quite astounding, really. The video ended and Serena looked at them with expectation in her eyes. “We,” Hitoshi started, “are guys.”

…

…

…

“Pfft!” Izuku couldn’t help it. Hitoshi was a very blunt person, almost as blunt as Izuku. The only reason Izuku didn’t say it was because he actually did find it fascinating if not a bit girly. Serena rolled her eyes and waved the purple-haired boy and his Espurr. “I knew you were going to say that!” she exclaimed. “You two are always ‘hero’ this and ‘trainer’ that. This is about me now.” Serena climbed on the table, let her legs cross and tossed her hair over her shoulder. “So? What do you think?”

And laughing ensued. It was good-natured though and after a few giggles, they got serious.

“So you want to try doing that?” Izuku asked. Hitoshi raised a hand. “What exactly is it again?” Serena rolled over, laying on her stomach on the table to face them closer. She pulled up an article on her phone and turned it around. “Pokemon Contest are basically talent shows and beauty contests for a trainer and their pokemon with different rounds for each competition in different cities and towns across Kalos though they are popular in other regions too. While the first round varies, most commonly the second round for each contest is a show put on by pokemon and trainer alike usually combining dance, song, quirks, and pokemon moves to create a routine to wow and stun the crowd with beauty, elegance and grace. There are different age categories for teens and adults but most teens enter the adult field, the more professional field, if they get enough popularity in it as teens, sort of like trainers becoming heroes. For both Teen and Professional Field there is a grand contest where if you have enough contest wins for that contest season, you can participate for the title of Kalos Queen, for the Professional title that is. The teen title is Kalos Princess.” She took a deep breath and looked up.

“You totally just read that off the website, didn’t you?” Izuku smirked.

“Yup!” Serena sat up unashamed. “It’s the modern-day popstar! Wouldn’t it be so cool?!” She leaned in. Izuku and Hitoshi sweatdropped. “Y- yeah!” Izuku scratched the side of his head. “But those require a lot of money, right. For costumes and props? No offense, since I am speaking about you and me from Vaniville Town, but we are definitely country bumpkins.”

Serena raised an eyebrow. “I don’t want to hear anything from you, mister. You are still wearing your clothes from first grade!” Izuku crossed his arms. “I haven’t grown since first grade either.” Hitoshi snorted.

True, malnourishment will do that to a kid: stunt their growth. Izuku looks a whole three years younger than his friends but that comes with consequences. More than once they have pointed out that his cheeks look a bit hollow or his arms and legs, despite the muscle there, are like twigs and more than once has he used the lie that his whole family is naturally thin.

The key to telling an effective lie for a long time is to never change it. Ever. Not one day it’s his whole family then the next only his Mom is that thin. No. His whole family is forever and always that thin, even if they aren’t.

“I don’t know,” Hitoshi leaned in. “I think those pants are looking a bit too tight.” Izuku swallowed thickly. “Yeah, probably around now they are but my family doesn’t have the money for more clothes.” Lies. Inha has plenty of costumes and cute toddler clothes. It is more like they don’t have money to spend on Izuku’s necessities. These ‘too tight pants' could be blown off by a strong wind they were so worn thin.

Violet eyes met viridian. Something,  _ s-o-m-e-t-h-i-n-g _ , flashed in Hitoshi’s eyes when he finally took a few more seconds to actually look at Izuku. Realization. Then pity. Then… guilt. It made Izuku’s stomach churn with anxiety. Sure, he let a few slip ups of the mouth out here and there but he doesn’t think he has let anything too revealing about his less-than-stellar home life out. Hitoshi nodded. “I’m going to bring you some of my old clothes,” the purple boy finally stated. Izuku’s eyes bulged. “Wh- what?!”

  
Serena piped up. “Oooooh! You have such an edgy, city boy style Hitoshi! I call dressing Izuku up with whatever you bring!” ‘H- hey, don’t I get a say in th-” “It’ll help me get prepared for my own dressing up for contests,” she smiled at him.

“You’ll let me help right? It will help me too.”

\-----

_ ‘Just stay silent, little man. You want to help your dear mother, don’t you?’ _

\-----

Chip bit his leg. Izuku yelped. “R- right! I mean.. Erm…” He looked around at them. “Uh, sure? Fine, whatever. I can’t promise I’ll look good though.”

Izuku knew they were put off by his odd response. Izuku hated the way Hitoshi’s eyes were so calculating. He knew the boy was putting pieces together that Izuku didn’t want to be put together.

Oh, sweet, innocent Hitoshi. Don’t look for the shadows hidden under the covers unless you are mentally prepared for the horrors that lie behind locked doors and tight smiles. Not everything is as it seems under the surface.

He looks at Hitoshi. “Are you sure that’s okay?” The purple-haired boy studied Izuku just a moment longer before nodding definitively. “Yeah. Cities usually have uniforms for schools so unlike you guys we don’t have different clothes everyday. Personally, I wear my uniform and then pajamas at home, only wearing my other clothes on the weekends and the like. They are too small for me anyway. I might even find something for Chip.” “Eevee!” Izuku hummed. “Okay, well, thank you.”

Izuku, despite knowing what he and Chip were heading home to, was quite excited for tomorrow! A quick cup of tea with Nurse Hope later and Izuku headed home. His smile finally fell and he opened the door. Black eyes met green.

“Hello, father.”

“Where were you?”

“...”

A smoking hand grabbed his arm and the door to the outside world locked behind him. As Izuku was once again thrown and tumbled down the stairs and as he stared up in fear at the looking Houndoom and fire breathing man that slowly walked down towards him he felt the tears of childish fear well in his eyes. He prepared himself for the worst.

_ Ah… I hate adults. _

“What is this?” Izuku ran his thumb over the silver dot on the edge of the pockets of a pair of ripped jeans Hitoshi had brought the next day. It felt like metal and it had a bump in it.

“Um… a button?” the purple-haired boy raised an eyebrow. Izuku swallowed. _Oh. I thought it was a stud or something._

He had begun noticing something for a couple years now. His vision is weakening slowly from the constant darkness in the basement and then suddenly being flashed with the bright light of the upper world. It burned every time he was let out to open his eyes for a good hour, the light too bright, even inside a normal house or school. It wasn’t anything too bad, truly, just small things were a bit blurry and reading was a bit harder now but that was it. He wouldn’t ever tell his friends that though.

“Well, duh,” Izuku played it off, “but why is it there?” Hitoshi shrugged. “I dunno. It just looks cool.” Serena took the black ripped jeans from Izuku’s hands and held them up. “Wow! They are so fancy! You really are a city boy, Hitoshi!” The violet-eyed boy blushed, crossing his arms. “I- I am not!” The two country bumpkins giggled at his antics. Hitoshi rolled his eyes. “Go on, try something on already.” Izuku sighed and stood. “Fine, fine, give me a second.” He took a few articles of clothing and disappeared in the hall outside the long table room. “I’ll take care of Chip,” he heard Serena call from inside.

That room had basically become their meeting room or at least where they spent most of their time at the mansion.

It was a bit odd getting dressed out in the expansive, red-carpeted hallway but it’s better than dressing in the basement. It’s warmer. He stripped down and stripped up. The clothes were just a bit loose on him but definitely more comfortable than the rest of his clothes that were way too tight. He knew Hitoshi had a thing for dark colors but dang!

Now donning the black ripped jeans and a black t-shirt, Izuku strolled back in.

…

…

…

Izuku tilted his head as Hitoshi and Serena stared at him. “Wh- what?” The two paled, eyes getting wide. “H- hey? Guys?” “Izuku,” Hitoshi spoke up, “wh- what happened to your arms?” Izuku froze. He forgot. He wasn’t wearing long sleeves anymore. His scars were on display. Izuku messed up. His heart pounded in his chest, vision blurring more than usual. Chip whined, jumping from Serena’s hold to hide behind him. This couldn’t be happening! This couldn’t!

“Izu-” * **BANG** *

Izuku threw the door open and ran, ignoring the shocked yells from his friends behind him. He couldn’t breathe. He just needed to get out! Get away! How could he be so stupid? He knew better than to make such a big mistake. In his haste, Izuku tripped down the grand staircase.

\-----

_ Green eyes widened and a scream tore from a child’s throat as they were thrown down wooden stairs, quickly silenced when- _

\-----

Izuku and Chip crashed to the ground. He groaned, the burns on his abdomen making themselves known. “Vee! Vee!” Chip tugged at his shirt frantically. Izuku couldn’t see straight, the world spun around him as panic took its course in his system. He clawed at the floor, pulling himself up.

“Izuku!”

No! He could hear Dad’s footsteps getting closer. Izuku gave a final push and bolted to the front door only to find it locked. He yanked and pulled and hit it but it wouldn’t give way. NonononononononononononononononononononoNO! Two arms grabbed him from behind, pulling him back. “L- let me go!” he thrashed.

“Izuku, answer me!”

“NO-”

His body unwillingly relaxed, a deep fog covering his mind. His heart slowed down to a normal rate. Chip rammed his leg and the hold on his mind was released. Izuku collapsed to the ground.

____________________________

“Izuku, calm down.” Hitoshi took Izuku’s hand and pressed it to his own chest to let the greenette feel his heartbeat then placed his hand on Chip’s head gently. “Calm down, everything is okay. We won’t hurt you.” Hitoshi started a set of breathing exercises.

“You are very good at this,” a frightened Serena whispered from beside him. “I’ve had experience,” Hitoshi whispered back. And he had. His parents loved him sure, but at school bullying was sadly a thing. Hitoshi had his fair share of panic attacks. He had a nice counselor who taught him how to deal with them. This was different, though. Something tells Hitoshi that Izuku is used to them too but that he doesn’t know how to handle them, only acting on instinct to get away from whatever caused the initial fear. He doesn't have a nice counselor, or anyone for that matter to teach him how to handle panic attacks. Finally, Izuku seemed to calm down. “Let me handle this,” Hitoshi whispered to the girl. She nodded.

It wasn’t only Izuku’s reaction that told Hitoshi it was different either. He might only be eleven but he isn’t blind and he isn’t dumb. Those scars, not even his bullies hurt him that badly. Who would do this? Hitoshi had suspected that Izuku might be homeless or something

But Hitoshi is eleven and no eleven year old in their right mind would think that a parent would abuse their child. Not when their own parents are so kind to them. Children are naive…

He let Izuku go, the greenette immediately curling in on himself. “I’m sorry…” he whispered. Hitoshi shook his head. “You didn’t do anything.” Izuku huffed. “That’s not what they say.” He sounded spiteful making Hitoshi think it was adults. Over the years of knowing the boy, Hitoshi had noticed that Izuku holds a certain prejudice against the older generation but ‘they’ could also mean the kids because he knows it can’t be easy at school for Izuku to be elementless.

But he didn’t know much. Izuku never tells him or Serena about his life, always averting to other subjects. Him telling them that they don’t have money for clothes is the closest Hitoshi has gotten to Izuku’s personal life in the two years they have known each other.

“Well screw them,” Hitoshi huffed. Green eyes peeked up at him. It was strange seeing the boy like this, usually so bold and brash. Hitoshi felt his heart ache. What causes someone so proud to become so frightened? Sure, he has had experience with panic attacks but Hitoshi is only eleven years old. He didn’t know how to tackle something like potential abuse, even if he didn’t consider abuse an option at this point. So he did what he did know how to do, avert attention from the problem to the joy before the problem.

“Fine, we won’t ask,” Hitoshi said bluntly, “but you have to come back upstairs because I still have more clothes for you.” “You w- won’t…?” Hitoshi shook his head. Suddenly, Izuku’s eyes got hard. “ _Or tell anyone?_ ” Too much was held in that question. Hitoshi felt like he should tell someone, tell an adult who could handle this but Izuku hates adults and he and Serena were Hitoshi’s first, and only, friends. He didn’t want to betray the thin trust they had built.

Hitoshi didn’t know it was so thin until now though. It hurt a bit to think Izuku thinks so lowly of them as to not trust them.

“Nope!” Hitoshi said. “We won’t. Right, guys?” he looked back at Serena and the pokemon. “Nada!” “Fen!” “Espurr!” Izuku and Chip exchanged a glance before they both stood up. “Okay…” Hitoshi grinned and happily led them back upstairs but something changed in his chest. He felt something new. A need to protect. Something was happening outside this mansion, something that made Izuku hurt but within these walls the boy was happy and smiling.

Hitoshi would protect this place, the place he felt safe from bullies and the place Izuku felt safe from whatever lurks in the sweet facade of Vaniville Town.

____________________________

Izuku is skeptical. He doesn't know if he can trust Hitoshi’s and Serena’s words but he forces himself to settle for now because this is their mansion. With his home stripped from him as a safe place, this was his safe place. He would fight tooth and nail for it, even if he had to fight his ‘friends’ for it.

“Well, since that happened,” he could tell Hitoshi and Serena were wary of him now, “let’s try this!” Serena pulled out a black denim jacket. Izuku blinked. “That is pretty cool,” his voice was quieter, still shaken up from earlier. He couldn’t get his confidence back up to par with his normal boldness outside of his house. “Y- you don’t want it?” he asked hesitantly. Izuku’s not used to getting new, even though they are used, clothes. Or getting anything at all for that matter. He couldn’t help but feel as though he was being pranked.

Hitoshi shrugged. “That one doesn’t fit me anymore. None of these do. Besides, I have a new purple one anyway.”

“City boy,” Serena whispered. Izuku snorted. It seemed to relax his friends to see him laugh so Hitoshi didn’t refute it this time. Izuku threw on the jacket. It covered his arms, that was the best feature, but it also looked pretty cool. “Okay, okay, scooch back! Let me take a picture so you can see.” Serena held up her phone.

* **snap** *

The three gathered around her phone to see it but he noticed that they were being cautious of touching him which was fine. Izuku didn’t feel too keen on contact at this moment. He hummed and took a step back. “Izuku?”

The greenette tucked the black t-shirt into the pants. “What are you doing?” Hitoshi asked. Izuku raised an eyebrow as he pulled the jacket tighter. “Styling it, obviously?” he began to feel the confidence coming back. Serena noticed and took it in full stride, stepping forward. “Oooh. Izuku the stylist. Come here and let me style your hair!” She sat on the table, legs dangling off while Izuku stood before her. “Your hair is so overgrown,” she huffed. “But I can work with it. Hitoshi, be a dear and grab some of those chains you brought.” The purple-haired boy nodded.

It was weird, letting them dress him up like some doll but he didn’t dislike it. It felt… nice. Warm, clean clothes. Izuku could truly only wear one outfit a day because he had to wash all of his clothes in the bathroom sink with a bar of soap then let them dry over the pull-up bars, after wiping the bars clean of blood from his calloused hands of course. Still, they never felt this clean or quite this soft. “There we go!” Serena lifted her hands from his hair and spun him around to face her by the shoulders. She looked at Fennekin. “Can you dress up Chip while I do Izuku?” The fire fox pokemon nodded. “Fennekin!”

“Vee…”

Izuku chuckled at Chip’s reaction to the prospect of getting dressed up. Serena took a chain necklace from Hitoshi and hung it around Izuku’s neck before taking a smaller one with clips and clipping it to two of his belt hoops so it would hang off him. She looked up at Hitoshi. “You brought a belt, right?” Hitoshi crossed his arms. “I didn’t bring my whole wardrobe, only one outfit.” Serena rolled her eyes. “But I knoooow you thought about the entire outfit when you were deciding on this, didn’t you?”

…

…

…

Hitoshi ran a hand through his hair, averting his eyes. “I guess.” She smirked. “Fork it over, city boy!” Hitoshi grumbled something about not being a city boy as he dug into his bag and pulled out a simple black belt. Serena took it. “Thank you very much!” She shoved it into Izuku’s chest. “Put this on.” Izuku sighed but nonetheless complied. He had to remove the belt chain first and put it back on after. Serena waved Hitoshi over. They stared at Izuku.

“Wow,” Hitoshi commented. “What a little bit of clothing that fits you can do.” Izuku tilted his head. “What do you mean?” Serena took another picture and when Izuku saw it, well, let’s just say a whole new door was opened to him that day.

Donning a black denim jacket over a black t-shirt that was tucked into black ripped jeans, Izuku wore a silver chain around his neck with one similarly hooked on his pants as well as a black belt. Half of his hair had been pulled back taunt so that some of his green curls, long due a haircut reaching his shoulders, were still down but the top was smoothed down in a ponytail like some sort of bad boy samurai.

“Eevee!”

He looked down at Chip. The fur on top of Chip’s head was spiked up and his tail was fluffed out a bit. Around his neck was also a chain necklace. Izuku’s chest felt tight. When was the last time he was allowed to do this? Sure, he looked too mature for an eleven year old in these clothes, though Izuku was the size of a nine year old, but he couldn’t care. This was… this was something he liked. Something he did that he knew Dad wouldn’t like just like him coming here everyday.

Izuku liked going against Dad. It felt like he was able to fight back, if even a bit, because Dad couldn’t show the outside world what he did to Izuku so if Izuku did stuff like this, Dad couldn’t stop him. He could beat him when he got home but while Izuku was here he couldn't touch him.

Serena and Hitoshi exchanged relieved glances when a smile split Izuku’s face. He looked at them with tears in his eyes. In years Izuku has never initiated a hug unless it was him hugging Chip but even then that was more out of fear and protectiveness in the basement. Izuku stepped forward… and hugged his  _ friends _ . It took a second of shock before Serena and Hitoshi hugged back but when they did it was full force.

They might not know who or what put those scars on him or why he is so guarded or why he hates adults but they don’t need to know. They were his friends and that was what mattered and if they were the only people on this earth that saw the real Izuku then that’s fine too. As long as he had them.

Hitoshi promised to bring more clothes the next day even if it wasn’t much because it really was just clothes he had grown out of but to Izuku it meant all the world.

“What the hell are you wearing?”

Izuku stared up at his father. “What did you expect me to do? Wear the same clothes I’ve worn since first grade forever?” Dad glared at him. “I don’t recall raising you like a thug.” Izuku stormed past the man down the hall. “I don’t recall you raising me in the first place,” he snapped back. A hand came and grabbed a fist full of his hair. And just like that, the confidence was shut down. Izuku squeezed his eyes shut as his body was lifted from the ground. Dad brought him to his face.

“Hey now, little man, I don’t believe I raised you to talk back like that either,” Dad hissed. “What do you have to say for yourself?” Chip rammed Dad’s knee, a fruitless effort. Izuku felt every ounce of his confidence dwindle, terror taking its place. * **BAM** * Izuku’s malnourished body slammed against the wall, being held up by only his hair. “What do you say, LiTtLe MaN?”

“I- I’m sorry!” he wailed. “I- I won’t t- t- talk back again!”

Dad grinned victoriously. Izuku was dropped to the ground with a dull * **thud** *. “Fine,” the man said, “you can wear your new clothes.” Izuku’s eyes widened but he didn’t dare look up. “Go down and get dressed,” Dad said, moving the weighted box for him. Izuku whipped to his feet, moving quickly down the stairs. He was quick to get dressed into a t-shirt and shorts, pulling the t-shirt over his head just as he heard the metal door close. Dad’s footsteps echoed ominously through the basement, knuckles cracking.

_ It’s okay. It’s okay. It’s OkAy.  _ Dad cracked his knuckles.  _ It’s okay! Everything will be OKAY! _

“ **We’ll see how long this rebellious phase of yours will hold out before I beat it out of you.** ”

_ Okay? _

Izuku sighed as he left the school building for lunch. He never ate inside, or in general. There was no one to sit with and everyone practically ignored him. He was a ghost in the school aside from doing work and turning it in. That’s fine. He didn’t need anyone there and Serena he would talk with after school. He didn’t have a lunch anyway so he more or less just slumped behind the school and fiddled with his chains before pulling out his notebook.

Izuku was shaken up at first at Dad’s words. He didn’t wear the new clothes he obtained from Hitoshi, and some from Serena, for almost a month but he couldn’t stay away from them for long. Anger continued to build in him at his family until finally he decided to just screw it and began wearing the different shades of blacks, grays, and some whites here and there. Dad stayed true to his word and the beatings got longer and harsher and every time he stood again with more and more resentment in his heart and a greater need to defy his father. How long could this rebellious phase continue? Long enough for Izuku to work up the courage to spit in his tormentor’s face.

He knows he never will, not while Inha and Mom are still there. He still has to protect them too. But it’s nice to dream.

Izuku was sketching an idea for a dress for Serena and Fennekin, having recently gotten into fashion himself and finding he really liked it, when he heard a couple of kids come out and run to the other side of the dumpster that he was hiding behind.

“H- hey, man, we really shouldn’t be doing this,” boy 1 said. “What, my dad does this all the time!” boy 2 refuted. There was the sound of a box shuffling. “B- but those are cigarettes! It’s illegal for us to smoke those!”

Izuku raised an eyebrow.  _ Illegal?  _ He glanced down at Chip who he had brought out for lunch even though the children weren’t allowed to bring their pokemon out at school. Illegal. Izuku liked the sound of that.

“Just shut up,” boy 2 growled. “You can’t chicken out on me now after you snagged them from your dad.” Boy 1 didn’t reply. Izuku smirked. He stood up and rounded the dumpster, revealing himself and Chip to the boy’s. He saw the progression of emotions go through their eyes as they jumped up, dropping the pack of cigarettes. Fear at being caught, realization of who it was, and then smugness when they smirked at him.

“Oh, does Deku not have anyone to eat lunch with?” Kreig, boy 2, taunted. Izuku raised an eyebrow. “No **p** e,” he popped the ‘p’. “Didn’t think it’d be much fun sitting with dimwits like you two.” The boy’s glared at him but Izuku doubted that they would do anything as Izuku stepped forward. Bakugou keeps the school away from him for some reason or another. Izuku doesn’t care enough to question it. He leans down and picks up the pack of cigarettes. Boy 1, Bret, takes a sharp breath. “I wonder what you were planning on doing with these, hmm?” He smirks at them.

“Give them back, Deku,” Kreig growls, taking a step forward. Izuku held them up, even though the two boys towered over himself with his stunted growth from malnourishment. “Ah, ah, ah, you wouldn’t want me taking these to the teacher, would you?” Bret huffed. “You think she’d believe you?” Izuku shrugged. “Maybe not but it is a small town and I know where you live. Surely you wouldn’t want this to get back to your father, hmm, Bret?” The boy faltered.

“That’s enough, Deku,” Kreig stepped forward again. “Give them back now or else.” Izuku rolled his eyes. “Or else what? I know Bakugou has you in his lap like little lost puppies. You won’t do anything.” “Deku… You think you are so big now dressing like that? You look like an idiot and don’t make me remind you that you are elementless.” Chip growled. Izuku spat on the ground at Kreig’s feet. The boy’s eyes lit up in fury. “Kreig, don’t!” Bret’s warning came too late as Kreig thrust his fist forward. Unfortunately for him, short or not, Izuku has been training to fight since he was four. He tilted his head to the left, the fist just brushing past his cheek. Green eyes dilated and a small, bony hand came and nailed Kreig across the face. Kreig stumbled back. Chip jumped behind him and the boy tripped over the Eevee and fell flat on his rear.

“Why you little-!” Bret ran forward. Izuku ducked and, with much flexibility, kicked the boy in the stomach so hard the boy would have thrown up his lunch if he had eaten it instead of trying to smoke. Bret fell to his knees, clutching his stomach, just enough to meet Eevee’s back kick to the face. They looked up at Izuku who now towered over them. He crouched. Bret didn’t do anything as Izuku reached forward and slipped his hand into the other boy’s pocket, taking out the lighter he knew was there.

“W- we’ll tell the teacher!” Kreig weakly protested. Izuku flicked on the lighter, watching the little flame dance for a bit before he held it to Kreig’s face. He smirked. “And what? Tell her you got your butts handed to you by the elementless kid and his crippled Eevee?” The boy’s froze. Izuku put down the lighter and stood. He pointed to the front of the school. “ **Get lost.** ”

They were quick to scramble to their feet and run. Kreig looked back. “Y- you’ll pay for this!” Izuku simply cracked his knuckles and they skedaddled. He watched their now empty space for a long time. “Vee?”

Izuku looked down at the lighter in his hand. That was the first time he ever hit anyone aside from Dad when they train. It felt… nice. Like he was paying them back. Izuku liked the feeling of his fist landing a solid punch on someone rather than Dad’s fist in his gut. He turned around and shuffled a cigarette from it’s box. He had seen Dad do this a couple of times here and there. Izuku lit the lighter again.

\-----

_ Dad’s flame danced in his palms, slowly reaching out for the cowering child, too wounded to move away as it planted itself on his chest. _

\-----

He was scared of fire. Izuku knows he is. But there was something ironic about doing something illegal with what Dad tries so hard to tear him apart with to make him ‘less rebellious’. An indirect ‘Screw you’ to his father. Izuku lit the cigarette and stuck it between his lips. He took a big puff.

* **COUGH COUGH COUGH** *

Izuku took it out.

\-----

_ Smoke filled his lungs. Izuku couldn’t breath. He couldn’t BrEaThE!!! _

\-----

The boy grimaced, shivering as memories played in the back of his mind. Not just memories as they too were his future. Izuku found himself not hating it though. This smoke… tasted different? Izuku took another puff. He still choked on it but not as badly, his lungs used to inhaling smoke already at this age. Izuku sat again, leaning against the school building.

He heard the teacher come out and call for any students who were still out for lunch. He didn’t come in and eventually heard it close. The teachers wouldn’t care enough to tell his parents anyway. “Eevee?” Chip looked up at him concerned. Izuku smirked and lifted his cigarette to the sky.

“Lookie here,  _ Hisashi _ !” he spat the name of his father. “I’m out here tarnishing the Midoriya name wearing thug clothes, smoking, and I’m skipping school! What are you going to do about it, huh?” And there was no one to kick him for it and Izuku  _ loved _ it. Izuku didn’t return to class that day.

____________________________

“Where’s Izuku?” Hitoshi asked as he ran up to meet Serena who was just making it to the mansion, same as him. She shrugged. “He was at school up until lunch then he just suddenly disappeared.” Hitoshi frowned and pushed open the door.

“Hey, hey!”

They stopped. At the top of the stairs, leaning against one of the columns as he sat on the railing, was Izuku in black jeans and a black tank top, jean jacket to the side revealing his arms, a cigarette between his lips. The sound of air being taken and let out followed by a plume of smoke came from the greenette’s mouth. He smirked.

“What’s crackin’?”


	5. Take A Break

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A certain Underground Hero takes a break in Vaniville Town.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone feeling today?

“ **You either take a break or you are fired.** ”

Shouta stared at the mammal principal in shock. “Wh- what?!” Principal Nedzu nodded. “You heard me.” His face softened. “Aizawa, you know we just want the best for you but you need to take a break. You are pushing yourself too hard and your students too hard as well.” Shouta’s fists curled by his sides. “I’m fine, Nedzu,” he growled a bit too harshly. The rat-dog-bear thing sighed. “I don’t care if you think that or not.” He stamped a paper and slid it across his desk.

“As of right now, UA Class 1-A teacher Shouta Aizawa is on leave for a month.”

Shouta stormed out of the principal’s office angry, Umbreon trailing beside him just as peeved. School hours were over for the day so there were only a few teachers in the hallway. He saw the way they sent pity glances his way. He heard their whispers.

\-----

_‘Poor Aizawa.’_

_‘You know it’s that time of year.’_

_‘He always gets so stressed.’_

_‘Can you blame him?’_

\-----

_‘No... After all, this is the month Shirakumo died fifteen years ago.’_

\-----

Shouta grit his teeth.

_Shut up…_

He slammed open the teacher’s lounge door. Hizashi's and Nemuri’s heads shot to him. “You set this up, didn’t you?” he hissed. The two didn’t respond. Shouta clicked his tongue. He stomped past them and to his desk, gathering his things.

“Sho,” Hizashi whispered, so unusual for his usually loud voice. Shouta’s hands slammed on his desk, his head low and his long black locks falling to cover his face. Shirakumo’s smiling face flashed in his mind. Shouta felt tears prick at his eyes. _Stop it! It’s irrational! He’s been dead for fifteen years!_ Hizashi’s hand fell on his right shoulder, Nemuri’s on his left. A strangled sob left his lips. “I- I miss hi-m so much!” 

“We know, Sho,” Nemuri said softly. “We know.”

They let him ride out his tears. It always hit him at the worst when October hit. Shirakumo Oboro, Hizashi and his best friend in their high school years here at UA Trainer’s Academy. He died in a villain fight their first year. So close to graduating to their second year too. Shirakumo and Hizashi were the ones to bring Shoto from his shell, Nemuri tagged along soon after, two years older than them.

“I have a friend in Vaniville Town,” Hizashi stated once Shouta recollected himself. “It’s a small town a few hours from here, quite peaceful. I think it would do you some good.” … “I will call him up and tell you are coming, okay?” … “It’s for the best, Sho,” Nemuri pitched in with all kindness. Shouta sighed and hung his head, a few straggling tears dripping to the wooden desk below.

“Okay…”

He left the next day.

Vaniville Town: three hours away from Lumiose City, through Aquacorde Town, through the forest and then… nothing. Maybe Shouta is just really used to the city but this town couldn’t even be called that. It was so spread out with dirt roads and old buildings. He thinks he saw maybe one? restaurant? This is where Hizashi sent him to relax? Shouta shook his head. The bus came to a stop outside a sketchy-looking bus stop. He picked up his suitcase and stepped off. The only person to get off. Shouta looked around. There was Nurse Joy- What?

The pink-haired woman waved at him and trotted over. No, it wasn’t their Nurse Joy, this was- “Hi! I’m Nurse Hope!” _Ah._ “But you can call me Hope.” She didn’t have pink loops and instead her pink hair was in two long braids but her face was uncannily similar to Nurse Joy’s. “Yamada told me you would be coming. Aizawa Shouta, right?” Shouta nodded. “Yeah.” She grinned. “Come with me! I have a room in the Pokemon Center for you.” “Thanks…”

“Here we are!” Shouta looked the ‘center’ up and down, taking in its wooden frame and red cross sign that had dulled over time. “Now, I heard that you are here to be resting or something,” she mused, leading him in. “There’s not much to do here but I can show you around if you’d like.” She opened a door to reveal a room with two sets of bunk beds. “It’s supposed to be for trainers to rest but I’m sure you can guess that we don’t really have many of those who pass by.” Shouta hummed, walking in. “It’s fine.” He turned to her and bowed. “Thank you, Hope.” She smiled. “Dinner won’t be for a bit. Just come get me or Wigglytuff if you need me. At least one of us should be wandering around here.”

Shouta nodded and he was left alone. Shouta sighed. He brought out a pokeball. In a flash of light, Umbreon appeared and Shouta repocketed it. “Umbreon.” Shouta nodded. “Yeah, we’re here.” He set his bag by the bottom bunk of the far bunkset and flopped onto it. It squeaked as it took his weight. Shouta stared at the frame above.

\-----

_‘Shooooouta!’_

\-----

The raven-haired man curled into a ball on the bed, hands coming to cover his ears as his dead friend's voice bounded in his head.

\-----

_‘Take some time off,’ Hizashi urged. ‘It will do you good.’_

\-----

The bed dipped as Umbreon jumped up and curled up beside him. Shouta shakily ran his fingers through the pokemon’s fur. His eyes fluttered closed and soon Shouta found himself drifting off to sleep.

…

…

…

* **CLANG** * * **GASP** *

Shouta shot up, heart ramming in his chest, Umbreon already up and moving. Working in the hero field one contracts a major bout of PTSD. It comes with the job. Shouta jumped off the bed, feet silent on the floor but fast. He grabbed the doorknob and swung the door open. * **BANG** *

His black eyes met viridian ones. It took him a second to realize he was staring at a curly green-haired nine, maybe ten, year old boy clad in all black. Another to process that they were both in the same stance with one foot back and hands out, only difference was Shouta’s right hand was gripping the capture weapon around his neck. But that isn’t what caught his attention. It was the fact that a nine year old boy was in such a defensive stance in the first place.

“Oopsie!” Hope walked in from another hall and picked up the metal pan the boy had dropped. She handed it back to the boy. Shouta noticed the way the greenette’s hands shook as if they hurt to move. “Sorry, Izuku, Aizawa.” Both male’s in question slid back into normal stances. “Who’s he?” And wow, who knew a child’s voice could sound so cold? Hope rolled her eyes. “Don’t give me that tone when you haven’t even met him." Shouta took a deep breath and walked in. “Hey, kid, sorry about that.” He held out his hand. “I’m Aizawa Shouta, a hero from Lumiose City.”

For a split second the kid’s green eyes widened, a spark of wonder, but they quickly died, distrust and fear flashing in them much brighter than any awe that they might have held. ‘Izuku’ didn’t respond or take his hand. Only turn away and walk past Hope to the back. Shouta blinked. “Sorry about him,” Hope sighed sadly. “He’s a bit unsociable.” Shouta shook his head. “It’s fine.” He heard the back door close. “Did something happen?” The woman hummed. “I’m not sure, really. His name is Midoriya Izuku. Once upon a time he used to be such a happy boy and most of the time he is but around new people, specifically adults, it’s like he shuts off.” She looked so sad. “Izuku usually comes around this time,” Shouta looked at a clock reading 8:39pm, “so you will probably see him often while you are here.”

The door to the back opened and in came the kid, not even sparing Shouta a second glance but somehow Shouta knew the kid was keeping a watchful eye on him. Trailing him was now a three-legged Eevee.

“I have to go,” Midoriya announced. “Alrighty! See you tomorrow!” Hope waved. “See you, kid.” All he got was a glare and the boy and his supposed Eevee left.

_Well, maybe there was some excitement in this town after all._

“How does dinner sound?” Hope asked.

____________________________

Izuku hates this. That dang man has been lingering around Vaniville Town like some sort of hobo for two weeks now. He can’t even go outside he feels without seeing him! The last thing he needs is another pesky adult ruining his lif-

“Aren’t you supposed to be in school?”

_GEEZE! I was just about to pop a cigarette too!_

“Aren’t you supposed to be in your grave?’ he quipped back. Izuku and Chip were currently sitting on the fence in the back of the school so happily skipping their 6th grade math test. Yeah, that’s right! Izuku’s in jr. high now! And ooooh how he loved the hobo’s dumbfounded face when he heard Izuku was, in fact, twelve and not nine. The man rolled his eyes and climbed the fence to sit next to him, his Umbreon joining him.

“Why are you skipping?” Aizawa asked.

…

“Do your parents know?”

Izuku glared at the man so hard he is sure Aizawa paled a bit.

“Ah, I see.”

Izuku hates the way he feels like the man sees through him no matter how much he tries to hide it. They don’t know. The teachers are all too happy to ignore his presence anyway and Izuku makes great use of their lacking favor in him. “It don’t matter,” he huffed. “I still have the second highest grade in the class.” “Even though you don’t attend?” Izuku rolled his eyes. “It’s not like I _never_ attend but if I know the stuff already then what’s the point?” He jumped off the fence. “Gotta scram.”

Izuku and Chip walked away.

…

…

…

“Why are you following us?” he sighed. Aizawa hummed from behind him. “Well, I don’t know many people here aside from you and Hope so what else am I going to do?” Izuku scoffed. “Maybe not stalk a child?” Umbreon made a snickering noise making Izuku smirk. “So what is there to do in this town?” Aizawa pressed for a conversation. Knowing he wouldn’t get out of this, Izuku sighed, just to let the man know his personal hatred for this, and settled for holding a conversation.

There wasn’t much in Vaniville Town. Izuku showed him the Rhyhorn fields. “You can learn to ride one sort of like a tourist attraction.” The Rhyhorn fields were actually kept by Serena and her Mom though Izuku has only met Ms. Williams twice. She was nice though but Izuku knew better than to extend his stay. Not because he didn’t trust her, because he didn’t, but its a small town and Ms. Williams saw Dad in town and told him about Izuku being over once.

\-----

_‘So you got yourself a little girlfriend?’ Dad smirked. ‘I doubt she’d be your friend if she saw you like this.’ He was kicked across the basement floor in the stomach so hard Izuku threw up his pitiful breakfast of a protein bar. Dad laughed._

_‘So weak. You really think anyone would be friends with you?’_

\-----

Izuku shivered. Aizawa noticed but Izuku didn’t notice Aizawa noticed the way Izuku’s eyes darkened. 

“Our high school’s track and field team is pretty good I suppose,” he continues, “with all these dirt roads and the like. We have a community baseball team for adults. I’m sure they’d let you play a spell if you asked.” Aizawa hummed. “The Oran Bush is the only restaurant in town and it's more like a bar than anything but there is a back for just eating. Other than that, can’t say there is too much around here.” Izuku looked over his shoulder at the following man. “What brought you to this junk stop in the first place?” Hobo smirked. “Oh, so you are interested in us now?” Izuku looked down at Chip and the two rolled their eyes. “Yeah, no,” Izuku replied. “But if you are going to continue stalking us then I feel we should know at least a bit about our stalkers.”

“Fair enough,” and the two continued walking. “I’m a hero,” the man started, “but I teach at UA Trainer’s Academy.” Izuku and Chip whipped their heads around to the man. Hobo smirked. “Yup. I’m here on leave because the principal told me to take a break.”

“A break? Why?”

Aizawa shrugged. “Just some unsavory things that happened."

Izuku hates the way he knows his face contorts to one of concern but a small part of him, that little part of him that still wants to be a hero, screams. “Are… you okay?” Aizawa and Umbreon seem shocked at his question which, to be fair, he is too that he even asked it. Aizawa and Umbreon, their faces turn to something almost sad. “Yeah, kid, we are okay.” And that was it. Izuku didn’t know how to respond so the four walked down the dirt roads in companionable silence.

“ **_Izuku?_ **”

____________________________

Shouta watched the boy’s body go completely rigid. They simultaneously turned around and were greeted with a tall man with curly black hair and black eyes. The resemblance between the two and the name of familiarity could not be mistaken. This man had to be Midoriya’s father. Shouta has been formulating suspicions on the kid for the past couple of weeks now but judging by Midoriya’s reaction to simply his name being called, Shouta suspects the relationship between these two isn’t all that great.

“What are you doing out here?’ Shouta was stunned at how calm the man sounded. He sounded so normal, not at all what Shouta had imagined when he first began suspecting Midoriya’s parents of child abuse. But he would not be fooled. It could all be a facade. “Oh! I was just showing Mr. Aizawa here around!” Shouta and Umbreon met eyes. Midoriya’s whole entire demeanor changed.

“That’s _nice_.” Mr. Midoriya stepped forward, extending his hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Aizawa. I’m Midoriya Hisashi, Izuku’s father.” Shouta hummed, taking the offering and shaking back. “Aizawa Shouta. Likewise.” The man turned to his son. “Why don’t you skedaddle back to school and tell your teacher that I took over the tour, hmm?” Izuku nodded. “For sure!” He turned and beamed at Shouta.

The smile was so fake it broke Shouta’s heart. Midoriya’s entire body language screamed that he didn’t want to go, his eyes were laced in fear and yet he smiled so convincingly. To the untrained eye, it would seem perfectly normal. But Shouta’s eye is trained.

“That is unnecessary,” he responded. “It was a task assigned to Midoriya after all.” He noticed the minuscule way those viridian eyes widened. Yeah, Shouta would play along. His gut was almost always right and right now it was telling him that if he didn’t play along Midoriya would be in danger later. Mr. Midoriya seemed shocked by this too, probably sure that Midoriya had been bluffing. “Oh, of course. We must have you over for dinner some time,” Mr. Midoriya suggested. “I am afraid I will only be in town for a little over a week longer.” Midoriya’s hands curled into fists. _Oh?_ “A shame,” Mr. Midoriya sighed. “We are quite busy this week. Well then, I won’t hold you.” He turns back to Midoriya.

“I trust you’ll be home tonight?”

The kid’s smile faltered a bit. “Where else would I go?”

…

…

…

“Well then, I will see you at home.” Mr. Midoriya bowed to Shouta. “It was nice to meet you.” And he left. Shouta wasn’t supposed to hear it but Midoriya and Chip both gave a breath of relief. Shouta pursed his lips. “Midoriya,” he started slowly, “is everythin-”

“Everything’s _okay_.”

Not fine or alright. The forceful way Midoriya said that, it was as though he were trying to convince himself. “I have to go,” the boy turned away.

\-----

_‘I trust you’ll be home tonight?’_

\-----

“You know you don’t have to go home,” he pressed. Cold green eyes glared at him from over the child’s shoulder.

“Don’t speak about things you don’t know.” Shouta was taken aback by the force of those words. “Anyway, don’t expect to see me tomorrow.” Shouta jumped back to reality. “Why not?” The greenette didn’t respond and Shouta knew that the conversation was over. He hated watching the back’s of Midoriya and Chip disappear. He only had a weak and a half until he had to go back to Lumiose City. Shouta vowed to get the boy to at least open up to him just a bit before he left.

____________________________

Izuku went straight home. He knew he could get away with still running off to the mansion tonight but he was already in enough trouble as it was. He called Chip back to his pokeball and pocketed it. Izuku didn’t even have to walk up to the front door. Dad was already waiting for him outside, knowing that he had Izuku wrapped around his finger.

Why?

Because the front door was cracked open and Izuku could just make up the black hair of his little sister in the living room and hear her’s and Mom’s giggles from outside. Dad knew he could hear them too. It was a silent threat on their safety if he pressed the boundaries anymore today and today Dad found out about him skipping school. It was nice of Aizawa to play along, really, but Izuku and Dad have known each other for years. They can tell one’s lie from another. They are both well-versed in acting normal around people outside. Dad knew he was bluffing and now Izuku bit the hook himself.

He didn’t say anything as he walked in the house but he felt Mom’s eyes on him, probably shocked that he was here at this time. Inha grabbed her shirt and pulled on it. The three year old pointed at Izuku as he crossed the living room entryway.

“ **Mama? Who’s dat?** ”

Izuku bit his tongue and stormed past. Inha doesn't even know who he is! Three years old, for three years she has lived in this house and maybe only seen him once or twice? “Oh, sweetie, that’s-” Mom cut off when Dad stopped in the entryway and glared at her. Izuku looked over his shoulder to watch. Mom gave him a guilty glance before she spoke again to her daughter.

“ **He’s just a kid from town, sweetie** ,” Mom replied to Inha’s question. “Daddy’s just helping him with school.”

Izuku knew she would say it. He _knew_ she would. And yet… it still hurt so much! Tears pricked at the corners of his green eyes. Izuku spun away and stormed down the hall. He could feel Dad’s victorious smirk from here. _What? Is he happy? Proud? Proud of himself for breaking apart Mom and me bit by bit?_ Izuku pushed open the closet and stepped back to let Smokey push the weighted box aside. A new thing Dad has been doing is having Izuku open the metal door and close it himself, locking himself int he basement each time. He was training Izuku to be some pet, some tamed caged animal and Izuku… 

He heard Inha laugh happily in the living room.

Izuku… went along with it. For her. For Mom. For his own sanity. It was all he and Chip could do at this point. The two desperately clung to any shards of joy they could find in this world and it wasn’t much. Everything had been stripped from them: freedom, food, light, warm water, friends, and now even Mom and Inha. Mom couldn’t even acknowledge she knew him anymore. Izuku wonders at what point will she truly lose all feeling for him and replace it with Inha.

“I’ll be back down later,” Dad said. “I’d get prepared if I were you. I’m not too pleased with you at the moment.” Izuku didn’t respond, only close the hatch. He listened to the box being placed over his cage door. Izuku let Chip out and the two descended the stairs.

* **drip** * * **drip** * * **drip** *

Tears flowed from his eyes but he was too numb to wipe them. Izuku went through a certain process he did outside his ‘room.’ There was no door and there were no walls and some would call him insane but Izuku lifted his fist and nodded it in the air, * **tap** * * **tap** * * **tapping** * his foot in time to simulate the sound of knocking on a door. He put it down and reached out for the imaginary doorknob, turning his wrist as if to turn it, and thrusting his arm forward to open it. Chip did a strange zigzag as if he were moving around the door to get in quickly and when Izuku walked in, Chip ‘shut it’ by walking forward with his snout out. It was weird and they could probably be diagnosed with a mental disorder for half of the things they did down here to act as though they were living normally above but at this point pretending was all they had. Just like he pretended that everything was okay because if he didn’t then Izuku was scared what would happen to himself. He and Chip had perfectly crafted this invisible wall of ‘It’s okay’’s around them. They laid new bricks and foundations everyday. Every. Single. Day.

“It’s okay,” Izuku mumbles aloud as he does every day. “It will be okay.” He strips and gets dressed in ‘training’ clothes. “We will be okay.” Chip slips off his chain necklace and curls up on Izuku’s pillow, perfectly content on listening to the boy’s ramblings. “Everything will be okay.” Izuku sat and pulled his thin, worn blanket over his legs.

\-----

_‘He’s just a kid from town, sweetie.’_

\-----

Shaky hands came up and tangled their fingers in knotted green locks of hair, unkempt and overgrown from years of neglect. They pulled hard, causing pain to their owner but nothing hurt more than his aching heart, whether from lack of air or emotional damage one could not tell.

\-----

_‘He’s just a kid-’_

\-----

“It will be okay. It has to be okay. It is okay. Everything is OkAy!” A smile split Izuku’s face but the hands did not remove themselves. “It’s okay, Chip! We are okay!” He whipped his head up, crazed viridian meeting concerned rainbow eyes. “Okay?! It’s okay! Y- you believe me, right? Right?!” A laugh burst from his lips, loud and manic, before it dwindled and Izuku curled up in a ball again.

“S- see? I told you. It’s okay. We are okay. Everything is oooookaaaaaay! Okay…. Okay?”

____________________________

Midoriya was correct. Shouta didn’t see him for two days after their run-in with his father and Shouta was getting increasingly worried. He could tell Hope was as well. His time was dwindling with the kid. He wanted to at least say goodbye or something.

Would that be right, though? To get close to the kid and then just up and leave like that?

Shouta sighed and shook his head. Up ahead, he heard yelling. _School should be out by now_ , Shouta muses. He’s walked this path every day to meet up with Midoriya. Shouta looks down and exchanges a glance with Umbreon before the two approach the middle school building. Getting closer, he recognizes Midoriya’s voice and, oh, isn’t that a relief. There is also the voice of a girl. _Couples quarrel?_ He thinks back on who Midoriya is. _Nah… definitely not._ Shouta rounds the side of the building to the back.

“- disappear for days and skip school and now you don’t even want to go to the mansion?” the girl complains.

“It’s not like that!” Midoriya snaps back. “I just don’t have time today. And what do you care if I skip school or not? You don’t even hang out with me to protect your ‘precious reputation.’”

The dirty-blonde haired girl crosses her arms. “Oh, is that what this is about? You know I can’t hang out with you in school or they will ignore me too.” Midoriya scowled. “Oh, how sad.” The girl glared at the greenette. “I thought you understood that? And does that even matter? Hitoshi can only come when he is in Aquacorde Town and you know that and you still choose not to come! Do you even care?” 

Anger flared in Midoriya’s eyes. “Care? CaRe?! Do _you_?! You don’t even know what I risk to go to that dang mansion when I do!” Shouta narrowed his eyes at that, staying hidden behind the corner now with Umbreon. “I should be asking you that because as far as I know, you don’t give jack about me. All you care about is your real friends. You know, the ones who ignore the elementless, quirkless loser and pick on the weaker kids. How amaaaazing they are.” The girl gasped. “They are my friends! How can you say that?! And what do you mean ‘risk?’ Are you kidding me? Do you have some overdramatic melodrama happening up in that head of yours or something?”

Shouta’s eyes bulged. After the confrontation with Midoriya’s father a couple of days ago and the disappearance of the kid himself afterwards, Shouta is sure the boy is being abused. He wondered how no one saw it. Maybe it was the kid’s angry act or disrespectful way he treated adults. Or maybe it was because of his elementlessness… But now, hearing that, Shouta feels he has a pretty good idea why and what these kids are being fed to be so blind to the turmoil Midoriya is going through.

“Ha?” Midoriya tilted his head, eyes twitching. Shouta didn’t think this would end with a happily ever after. “Where the hell do you get off?” The girl took a wary step back as Midoriya stepped forward menacingly, Chip following in his footsteps. Umbreon sniffed the air. “Breon…” he whispered. Shouta furrowed his eyebrows as the smell of smoke hit his nose. He looked back up and immediately recognized the source: Midoriya. But… how?

Midoriya’s eyes flashed red. “I- Izuku…?” the girl took another step back. Chip let out a strangled sound as his fur began to slowly grow orange. _He’s evolving? But he sounds in pain._ Midoriya’s green hair grew in red at a rapid rate, the ends catching on fire. “To think I trusted you,” smoke billowed from the boy’s mouth. “You of all people even though you still ignore me and talk about me behind my back just like all the others.” Midoriya’s breathing was getting ragged. The air around them felt boiling hot but the greenette seemed not to notice. “How _dare_ you call me your friend.” When Midoriya took another step towards the frightened girl, Shouta decided he better step in before things got ugly.

He revealed himself from behind, activating his quirk on the boy. “Okay, okay, break it up you two-” Shouta stopped. Why? 

Because Midoriya _didn’t_. 

Sure, his erasing quirk can’t erase the natural effects of one’s element such as heating the air when intense emotions are present but breathing smoke, changing actual physical features, hair catching on fire? Those weren’t simply elements. But he couldn’t erase them. Midoriya looked over his shoulder with blood-red eyes. The amount of anger held in them along with his apparent quirk not erasing made Shouta’s heart spike in fear.

“ **_You._ ** ” Oh, Midoriya is pissed. Chip, mid-way to Flareon- _Wait, what? He should have finished evolving by now?_ \- let out a low growl. Umbreon walked forward calmly to the Ee… vee? Shouta held up his hands. “You know I didn’t do anything wrong so don’t turn this on me,” he stated. Midoriya was starting to twitch slightly, his hands curling before forcing open. “Either way, I don’t think you two should be fighting like this.” Silence ensued as Midoriya seemed to be weighing what was happening.

As Umbreon calmed Chip, to everyone’s surprise, aside from Midoriya who seemed to not notice what was happening, Chip _de-evloved._ Like, turned back into an Eevee! Midoriya’s eyes faded back into green and his hair back to viridian as it stopped burning. With a sigh, he let out one last huff of smoke.

“I don’t have time for this,” he growled, still obviously angry and his breathing having yet to even out. He knelt and ruffled through his backpack, taking out a sketchbook. “What are you-” * **riiiiiiiip** * The greenette tore out a page and shoved it into the girls chest. “Don’t talk to me again unless you want to actually be my friend. Oh, and tell Hitoshi I said hi, will you?” Spinning around, Midoriya stormed off, limping slightly, Chip proudly following.

Shouta and the girl could only stare in shock, processing what they just witnessed. That… needed to be addressed.

He heard a soft gasp from the girl and turned back. “What is it?” Her eyes filled with tears as she stared at the page in her hands. Shouta rounded to her side and looked over. “A dress?” The girl looked up at him with a sad smile, tears falling freely.

“H- he designed it for me,” she explained. “B- because I w- want to be a performer.”

Shouta hummed. “It’s pretty good,” he mused. And it was. Midoriya had a knack for designing. “I- I don’t know wh- what to do,” she wailed, wiping at her eyes. “I j- just- I didn’t mean what I- I said! I- I’ve seen the scars. I know s- something is happening b- but I still said that!” Shouta and Umbreon met eyes. “What… scars?” he asked hesitantly. The girl froze before shaking her head. “I- it’s nothing! I- I have to go!” She spun around and tried to run. Shouta grit his teeth, unable to stop her in all black behind a school building without looking like a creep. _He’s asking them to hide it too…_ Instead he said this:

____________________________

“I don’t know the story,” the man said from behind Serena, “but I do know this: anyone worth being friends with is someone who respects others. If I were you, I’d evaluate who your true friends are because as far as I’ve experienced, those who bully and put others down will only drag their ‘friends’ down too.”

Serena stopped and looked over her shoulder.

“Also,” the man turned to leave, “be careful what you say around that one. There are some things, some _scars_ , you don’t want to uncover unless you are able to handle them.” And with that, the raven-haired man and his Umbreon left.

Serena felt tears well in her eyes once more, the paper in her hands wrinkling at the edges under her tight grip. Her head hung low. “I d- don’t know what to do…” she cried to no one.

____________________________

Shouta turned and ran after Midoriya. He needed to find out what the hell that was but more importantly if the kid was okay. He ran but dang that kid was fast. He wouldn’t have found him if it weren’t for Chip.

“Eeveon!” Shouta and Umbreon screeched to a halt just as Chip came running out from the back of the PokeMart they were passing. _What the hell was that…?_ The Eevee was seemingly evolving again, this time its fur turning blue and tail trying to grow into a fish-like form. Shouta could simply not process what he was seeing so he didn’t. He used what knowledge he had and that was that this was happening because Midoriya was either really angry or he was hurt or something, he thinks.

Shouta crouched down and caught the pokemon. “Chip, what’s wrong?” he asked calmly, trying to use his own calm to calm the… creature. “Eeveon!” It jerked its head to the PokeMart. Shouta pursed his lips. “Take me to him.” Without another word, Chip jumped away from him and scrambled behind the PokeMart, Shouta and Umbreon hot on his heels. Before he ever rounded the corner to the back, he heard the harsh breathing and the gasps of pain. Panic shot through him. The three rounded the corner and were presented with Midoriya, blue hair, blue eyes, and spasming. Shouta recalls seeing the boy twitching behind the school. The man ran to the boy’s side, sliding on the ground, years of training and experience triggering in Shouta’s mind.

_When someone is having a seizure_ , his old health teacher’s voice echoed in his head, don’t try and stop them. _Turn them on their side and place something flat and soft under their head and time the seizure for potential brain damage._

Shouta did just that. He all but ripped off his capture scarf and laid it next to the boy’s head before rolling Midoriya on his side and positioning his head onto it. He tried to call out to the boy but Midoriya was too disoriented. Shouta leaned back to avoid another spasm. He reached in his pocket to call the local hospital.

* **COUGH** *

Shouta’s movements came to a halt. His eyes moved back to Midoriya. Chip let out a strangled sound, almost falling to the ground but Umbreon caught him. * **COUGH** * Water bubbled up and out of Midoriya’s mouth. Shouta’s phone fell from his hand. “Suck!” _That’s not normal!_ He didn’t know how to handle this, whatever the hell this was. There is no training for this situation because this shouldn’t be possible! “Kid, I need you to stay with me,” he steeled his voice, rounding behind the boy.

\-----

_‘Shirakumo’s… what?’_

\-----

Shouta’s own breathing started to falter as the memories flashed back. He was supposed to come here to get away from those! Shouta shook his head, forcing himself to think calmly. He needed to get the water out of Midoriya’s airway first. Avoiding the spasms that were slowing now, Shouta lifted his hand and brought it down harshly between Midoriya’s shoulder blades. * **COUGH** * Shouta narrowed his eyes as the boy coughed up more water. He did this a few more times until no more water was coming up from world knows where. Now it was just the small spasms and breathing he needed to get fixed. 

“Umbreon!” Umbreon was pulling on Chip’s tail, trying to keep the ever-changing pokemon away. Chip let out a cry, pulling forward. It stumbled, weight uneven on only three legs. Chip pitched forward, head slamming into Midoriya’s chest and the boy _screamed_.

Shouta and Umbreon were forced to shield their eyes as a bright white light flashed.

He peeled them open after a few moments. Midoriya and Chip were back to normal, the now-greenette and now-Eevee gasping. The spasming had stopped though and that was good. Shouta took a shaky breath.

\-----

_‘Sho, I need you to listen to me very carefully.’_

\-----

He reached down and scooped the boy and his Eevee into his arms, leaning back against the wall of the pokemon center.

\-----

_‘Shirakumo… he… he died, Shouta.’_

\-----

Tears streamed from his black eyes as he held the two closer. Umbreon, his silent rock in the storm, curled up next to him and laid his head on Shouta’s leg. Midoriya and Chip were unconscious. He considered taking the boy home but he knew it was unwise to do that. Even if the boy was in a hurry to get back, probably so whatever he faced there would be less painful, but it would be worse if Shouta came back with the boy unconscious. He couldn’t take him to the hospital or to Hope either because they would have to call Midoriya’s parents by protocol. If he had proof of abuse he would but the kid gave next to nothing away so Shouta just stayed put. He would give it an hour before he would return the boy to his home. 

He sighed, running a hand through his black hair. “What the hell, Umbreon? What was that?” Umbreon lifted his head and looked at him. “Breon.” Shouta shook his head. “That’s not natural. The kid’s supposed to be elementless but that was two different ones. Plus elements don’t start fires or create water like that unless they have a quirk. They would just heat up the air or the air would get foggy for water elements.” Shouta looked down at the boy in his lap. “Something isn’t right, Umbreon,” he mused. “This is something we need to look into.” Midoriya shifted to a slightly more comfortable position. Shouta narrowed his eyes.

“This kid, no,” Shouta looked down at Chip, “this Eevee might be incredibly dangerous…”

____________________________

Izuku groaned.

His body ached. His lungs and throat felt raw. His chest hurt every time he breathed, more so than it already did that morning from the hit Smokey landed on him last night. All of his muscles felt so tight. But amidst all of that, something felt good. Something, someone was running their hand through his hair.

It felt so kind…

\-----

_Mommy cradled Izuku in her arms, rocking him back and forth, one hand coming up to comb his hair with as he muffled his cries in her shirt so Daddy wouldn’t hear them._

_‘Shh… It’s okay, Izu. It’s okay. It will be okay.’_

\-----

_It’s okay…_

Izuku leaned into the touch slightly, tired eyes fluttering open. Black eyes blinked down at him through his blurry vision.

\-----

_Daddy stormed down the stairs, black eyes gleaming in the dark._

\-----

Izuku shot up with a gasp, instantly getting lightheaded. He scrambled away as fast as he could. “Hey, kid, calm down.” Izuku stood sharply but his legs gave out. Oh no. He knew this heavy feeling. He had a spasm. Dad would- Two strong hands found his shoulders. Izuku’s head shot up.

“Breathe with me,” a calm voice. “Listen only to my voice,” not Dad’s voice. “Deep breath in… long breath out.” Izuku clung to that voice. “Deep breath in… and a long breath out… In… And out…” Gradually, his vision began to clear to only the bit of fuzziness he had from damage to his eyes over time in the basement. His heart stopped angrily beating against his ribcage and his abused lungs began taking in whole breaths. Blinking a few times, he realized that those black eyes did not, in fact, belong to Dad but instead to Aizawa.

The man smirked. “How are you feeling, kid? That was quite the scare you gave us.” Izuku blinked. _Aizawa…_ Izuku habitually curled away from the man before him, glaring. “The hell are you doing here?” Aizawa blinked, almost shocked. He held up his hands. “I was just making sure you were okay.” Izuku crossed his arms. “What, for an hour?”

Aizawa hummed. “You knew the general time you were out then,” he stated. “So this has happened before?” Izuku shrugged. “Every once in awhile.” Aizawa hummed. “Okay, then explain to me this: how is Chip evolving and de-evolving?” Izuku stared at the man for a good, long time before he deadpanned.

“Are you sure I’m the one who had the spasm?” he asked. “I’m ninety-nine percent sure that is impossible.” Izuku looked down at Chip. “Right? You don-” Rainbow eyes averted themselves to the ground. The greenette leaned in. “Chip?” Aizawa sharply inhaled.

“You don’t know.”

Izuku directed his attention back to the man with a glare. “ _Know what?_ ” he hissed. Aizawa’s gaze darkened. “I’m not sure,” he admitted, “but I know what I saw. While you were fighting with that girl, your hair turned red and caught on fire. You were breathing smoke too. Chip was about half-evolved into Flareon too. Just now he was evolving into-”

“HAHAHAHA!” Izuku laughed loudly, doubling over. “D- do you know how stupid that sounds?!” Izuku wiped fake tears from his eyes but truthfully he was petrified. Chip wouldn’t meet his eyes. Chip _knew_ something was happening. “That’s not possible,” he cackled.

“Then why are you shaking?” Izuku bit his tongue, eyes crinkling a bit at the sides. Aizawa leaned in. “Kid, I’m serious. This is something that you need to get checked out.” Izuku took a deep breath, looking up to the sky. “Ah… this is dumb.” He stood, wobbling a bit. “Kid?” “Sure, let’s say what you said is true or whatever,” Izuku looked down. “What does that matter? No one would care enough to stop or ‘fix’ it.” Aizawa stood. “Midoriya, you could be in danger if this gets out,”

Izuku shrugged. “So?” He rustled in his pockets and pulled out a pack of cigarettes he stole recently finding some amusement in the hobo’s shocked expression. He pulled his hand out of the way of the hobo’s. “Don’t even try it,” he growled as he took out a lighter and lit one. “Look,” Izuku took a puff, letting the buzz of smoke and tobacco fill his mind, and blew it in the man’s face, “you’re a smart man, for a hobo that is, but if I were you, I’d stop your little search into me, mk? You’ve been hanging around me specifically for a reason. I know what it is, you know what it is, you know that I know what it is, and I know that you know what it is. I’m telling you now to stop. You won’t find anything or get anything from it so it’s better that we just go our separate ways. You are leaving in a week anyway so just skedaddle and go on your way, mk?”

Aizawa looked him up and down with sad eyes. Izuku hated that look. It’s the look Mom used to give him. It’s the look she still gives him when they pass at home. It was the look she gave him before she said those words:

\-----

_‘He’s just a kid from town, sweetie.’_

\-----

It was the look she gave him when she DISOWNED HIM. 

“I can help you, kid,” Aizawa finally said. Izuku hummed. “Now, who said anything about anyone needing help?” He smirked, taking one last puff before tossing the cigarette on the ground, crushing it beneath his feet. A shame to waste a practically new one but he couldn’t very well walk into his house with one and he really needed a quick smoke at that moment to calm him. Izuku hid the lighter and pack in his bag. “I’ll see you round, Hobo, Umbreon.” He turned, gesturing Chip to follow. “Or not. It was nice knowing you, I guess.” He walked off.

“Hey, kid,” Aizawa called from behind, “I’ll still be at the Pokemon Center if you need me,.” Izuku’s stomach churned, a bit of him screaming out to turn around and accept the offer, what may be the only offer of freedom in his life. But, no matter how much resentment he held towards them and how much he tried to hate them, Inha’s giggles echo in his ears and the screams of pain from Mom from long ago press behind his eyes, stopping him because so long as he is there, so long as he acts as Dad’s dog, so long as he continues to sacrifice himself…. They will be safe.

“Next Thursday I will be waiting for you there before I go,” the hobo continues. Izuku looked over his shoulder. He knew he shouldn’t. It hurt so much to walk away from his ticket out. But he wasn’t stupid. He’s known this man for less than a month. He can’t trust him. Hero or not, Aizawa is still an adult. He’s greedy and holds power over those younger. Adults are… liars. Hypocrites. They are untrustworthy behind closed doors. 

Adults are fake.

So Izuku tosses his hand in a mock wave and tears his eyes away from Aizawa and Umbreon. He walks away, forcing himself not to run so as not to give away the pain he is feeling in his heart. Izuku lets his feet drag though the further he gets away once he knows Aizawa is out of sight. He can’t help the way a few tears fall as he forcibly shuts up the bright light of hope and surrounds himself back in darkness. Izuku stops and rubs his eyes.

“Chip,” he speaks up. Chip doesn’t respond, only looks down. Izuku struggles to suppress anger at his pokemon. Chip is all he has left. He needs Chip. “When we get home, after training, me and you are going to have a conversation, okay?” … “If what he said is true, I think I have a right to know.” … Izuku hung his head, fists shaking by his side. “Please, Chip. You are the only one I can trust. If you can’t tell me this much, if you are so adamant on hiding this even when you know it may be hurting me,” Izuku’s eyes narrowed slightly at Chip, “then I can’t believe you are any better than Dad.”

Chip’s rainbow eyes widened.

Izuku walked away, leaving a stunned Eevee to follow, if that is what Chip was at this point.

____________________________

Midoriya walked away.

His eyes when he looked over his shoulder at Shouta’s call would forever haunt the man. So much pain. So much longing. He could visibly see the fire in those green eyes being smothered by Midoriya’s own hands, the boy forcing himself into the darkness. For what Shouta had no clue.

Shouta and Umbreon stood there, both hoping that maybe, just maybe, the boy would come back and let them help. But he didn’t. Shouta couldn’t do anything. He had no proof aside from that girl and her confession of the greenette having scars but even she was hiding it for him and there was no audio recording. He couldn’t check the boy’s house. Hope had said she tried once and found nothing wrong so there was nothing there for Shouta to use as evidence either. He couldn’t use the boys attitude because as far as anyone knew, Midoriya was just a rebellious twelve-year-old boy.

Twelve.

The only thing Aizawa could even remotely try and use it that Midoriya is small enough to be nine but that could be chalked up to family genes but Mr. Midoriya was really tall so maybe not?

Shouta let out a distressed sigh. “Let’s go, Umbreon.” “Breon…” his pokemon whined. 

\-----

_‘Shouta!’_

\-----

Tears filled his eyes as they walked. Shouta kept his head low.

_I couldn’t save Shirakumo and now I can’t even save this little kid. How can I call myself a hero?_


	6. An Eevee's Story

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chip's backstory.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone today?

Chip doesn’t remember much before the lab, not even his name before he was Chip or before he was Experiment X13

He remembers the outlines of faces that he assumes to be his parents. A Vaporeon and a Leafeon. Just their outlines and tears and that’s all. He remembers the forest shaking around them as they ran, the little Eevee on the Leafeon’s back before light. An explosion. Being thrown off as they all went flying. Pain. He remembers the pain. Their images ran to him before they stopped. The yell of humans, angry. The Vaporeon and Leafeon hesitated before turning tail and fleeing. The last thing Chip remembers before blacking out were rough hands picking him up and the cage.

And then-

____________________________

A lone Eevee opened his eyes, quickly snapping them shut at the blinding light. He took a moment before opening them again and looking around. ‘Around’ wasn’t much. It was a small metal box with a cage door of thick bars the only thing allowing dim lights through. Outside the cage, across a thin hallway, was another cage housing another Eevee.

_ Where am I? _

He jumped when beside him something hit the wall. Only, it wasn’t a wall. It was just another cage set beside his with another Eevee. He cowered in on himself. A metal collar with a flashing red light was settled uncomfortably around his neck.

“M- Mama?” his voice squeaked. “Dada?” Nothing but another * **BANG** * from the Eevee in the cage over responded to him. He struggled to get to his paws but toppled over with a gasp on unevenly distributed weight. He pushed up again and fell again. The small Eevee noticed that he couldn’t feel his front right leg so he chose to favor his left to get up. Sitting in an upright position, he looked down to examine his numb right leg only…

There was nothing to examine.

There was NOTHING to examine. He let out a screech, reeling back. “M- m- my leg!” A long, tired sigh came from the cage across the hall from him. The Eevee in that cage looked up from its nap. “Shut up, pup.” He shook his head. How could he?! His leg was- “We are all missing one to keep us from escaping,” the Eevee growled, “so suck it up and stop fussing before you alert the humans that you are awake.”

* **Ca** - **Chunk** *

A door opened from somewhere in the long hall of captive Eevee. The Eevee let out a bedraggled sigh. “Now look what you did.” Quaking in fear and shock, he stared through the bars of the cage. A human’s face appeared in his line of vision eliciting another loud squeal. The Eevee in the cage over hit the metal wall again. He had never seen a human before but he knew this is what the human before him was because Mama and Dada used to describe them to him. They all look different, they say. This one was bald and short with big round glasses and a big bushy mustache. He grinned widely and that grin was one that promised pain.

“X13!” it chirped loudly making the Eevee flinch. _X13? Is that my name?_ He couldn’t remember. Every time he tried his head throbbed painfully. He doesn’t think he likes that name… “So you are awake. That’s great. Shall we begin?” _Begin? Begin what?_ With the rattle of keys, the cage door opened. X13… tried to jump out but he was caught by his scruff. “Ah, ah, ah. A feisty one, are you?” the man mused. “We will rid you of that spirit soon enough.” His cage was closed and try as he might, struggling did nothing as X13 wiggled fruitlessly in the air. He met eyes with the Eevee in the cage across from his.

“Good luck.”

X13’s brown eyes widened. He clawed and cried out in fear for Mama and Dada but to no avail as he was carried down the hall. At some point, he began to notice the other pokemon in the rows of cages. Most were Eevee, some were evolutions of Eevee. He whimpered when a Flareon threw itself at the bars, clawing out at the man holding him. Another one circled around and around in its cage aimlessly, muttering to itself. One sat dutifully in waiting. Another stared blankly up at the ceiling of the cage it was in.

_ I’m scared… _

He was brought out of the hall of cages and the door was closed behind them. X13 tried to look around but it was really only another corridor. At least this one had clean walls and brighter lights. Still, to an Eevee used to nothing but the smell of dirt and leaves, the sterile chemicals floating around made his nose tickle and his head hurt and he sneezed quite a few times before they reached their next destination. A white door was pushed open to reveal a room with white walls, a big white table in the middle, tables of various tools, a few evolution stones strewn here and there, one being drilled into loudly by a machine.

But that wasn’t what caught his eyes.

X13 looked up at the far wall where giant tubes filled with a green, slightly glowing substance stood, wide enough to fit a pokemon, tall enough to reach from the floor to the ceiling, only not by metal caps on each side. Inside… were Eevee. They were unconscious, each missing at least one leg with a mask over their snouts. They floated in the midst of the liquid.

One opened its eyes. X13 shivered at the mix of red and purple, so different from the normal brown of the everyday Eevee.

It looked tired, unaware of where it was. Another human in a long white lab coat walked up to the panel next to the tube and tapped something. The liquid drained and the Eevee fell unconscious again as it dropped to the ground. With a yelp, X13’s vision was dragged away as he was slammed onto the big white table. His head spun at the impact. Lazily lifting his head, he felt something around his ankles. The pain of the tightness around them snapped him out of his daze.

X13 looked around wildly. “What’s happening? What are you doing?” His cries were left unanswered. He tried to get up but he was strapped down, belly down. “Shut up,” a rough voice growled. Brown eyes looked up. Fear racked through X13’s body as a tall human with short black hair strode up, holding up a needle with a tube of liquid sealed to it. A bit of liquid dribbled down the needle. “Wh- what are you doing?” It growled again. “Shut the thing up,” the human looked at another.

Without warning, a thick white rope was shoved into X13’s mouth and tight tightly behind his head. It made his jaw hurt. X13 tried to shake it off but his head pulsed painfully at the movement. He tried to cry out again but his sounds were muffled against it.

_ I don’t like this! Take it off! Why are you doing this? _

Satisfied, the tall human approached again. X13 felt the needle press against his skin against his side.  _ Stop! Don’t! I don’t like it! _ Tears filled his eyes as he struggled harder. “Dang it. Stay still!” X13 gasped as a heavy hand smashed against his spine, pinning him further down. The human’s fingers wrapped around his small form tightly making it harder to breathe.  _ Let go! Let me go! _ The needle pierced his skin again, entering his flesh. A cold liquid began filling his veins but no matter how cold it was it still  _ BURNED _ .

He screamed against the white rope, thrashing under his bindings. It was like a torrent of icy flames was rushing through all of his veins, mingling with before overtaking the blood. His chest tightened, his heart felt like it would explode as it pumped more and more blood trying to run out the alien fluids.  _ Mama! Dada! It hurts! Make it stop! _

It did. Eventually. X13 was left gasping in pain but it was hard to get air around the rope in his mouth. A steady stream of tears fell from his tightly shut eyes. As the pain subsided, so did his consciousness. He felt himself waning from the waking world. His thrashing stopped and he fell limply against the cool surface of the table and soon darkness overtook his vision.

X13 woke again in the cage. He was drowsy and his body ached but what he noticed the most was how cold he was. The cold feeling in his veins never seemed to leave.

He doesn't know how much time had passed but what he assumes is everyday he was taken out and returned to that place, they called it “The Lab.” The lab was a scary place, he decided. Nine times now has he gone in and out and every time he was injected with something new. The humans called it “preparing his body.” For what he had no clue. Only that he didn’t like it. The cold feeling never went away as the natural warmth of his blood was tainted with each new injection. After the eighth injection, they didn’t pull him out for a long while. Others were taken in and out and in and out. Barely anyone spoke, the only sounds being his cage neighbor which constantly banged on their wall and shook the row of cages, the crazed laughter from an Eevee somewhere, and the sound of claws against metal as some reached aimlessly for their freedom. It was… lonely.

* **Ca** - **Chunk** *

He flinched, waiting in expectation at the now familiar sound of the door opening. Would they come for him this time? Would they inject him with another painful liquid? Or would it be another Eevee? Would he be safe for another moment?

Lady Luck was not on X13’s side today, it would seem. The evil doctor man opened his cage door. X13 knew better than to try and jump out at this point. He held his head low as he was roughly taken by his scruff. He counted the number of cages, empty and full, to take stock. X05 was gone, either in the tubes or… most likely dead.

* **BANG** *

He flinched as a… a what? Something threw itself at the bars that they were passing. It’s ears were long, tail long too. The fur around its neck was slick white but its base color was a deep magenta. It looked like a Flareon but also an Espeon? That’s… not possible. It growled and screamed and clawed for him. X13 met its eyes.

\-----

_ X13 shivered at the mix of red and purple, so different from the normal brown of the everyday Eevee. _

\-----

X13 could have thrown up right then and there. The crazed look in those red and purple eyes overshadowed by pain. So much  _ pain _ . Would that be what became of him? Would he be turned into that creature? Tears fell from his brown eyes again, joining the dried blood and tears that caked the floor of the cage hall.

_ I want Mama _ .

A Mama he could barely remember, only the barest glimpse of the shape of a Leafeon that would flash in his mind but day by day that outline grew blurrier, fuzzy with each sunrise that he could not see. He remembers some of the forest but most of it was all a blur of flashing lights and screams of an Eevee village torn apart. Trying to remember anything further hurt his head but the memories, the faint taste of dirt, the lingering clear air pressed at the back of his eyes as if they were truly there but only to mock him. Tales of long lost freedom. Dreams of the world outside. Nightmares of what could never be truly seen. 

“Experiment X13,” read the scientist carrying him out loud as he was brought in, “most responsive to the dosages in the Multi-Evolutionary Trials, in for first submergence.” “Is it not too early? It is quite young.” another human asked. The scientist shrugged. “Orders are orders and All For One has high hopes for this one.”

The doctor sighed. “Do you really think that this is possible? To make a pokemon that can evolve and de-evolve at will?” The scientist glared at him. “It doesn’t matter if it is possible or not. If the boss says do it we do it. Or would you rather the air container again?” The doctor paled. “Ah ha ha… not at all. I’m sure All For One knows what he is doing. If any pokemon can do it, it would be Eevee after all. L- let’s just get it in.”

X13 looked up just in time for a mask to be tightly strapped over his mouth and nose. His brown eyes widened in realization at what was about to happen as he was walked down the line of Eevee-filled tubes. An Eevee opened its eyes, a sickly green, and met his. It looked at him with pity.  _ I don’t want to… I don’t want to! _ X13 began to struggle. The scientist walked up a few stairs to a raised platform behind the tubes.

“Experiment X13,” the monotone voice recited as the man owning it unscrewed the metal top of the empty tube and lifted it, “going in for first submergence.” X13 struggled harder as a hole was uncovered in his mask and a tube was stuck through it, trailing out the outside of the holding tube. “Twenty-seventh test subject to go under,” he was grabbed by his ears painfully tight and lowered in before being dropped harshly when they couldn’t reach further, “with the dust of all evolutionary stones in the preservation liquid.” X13 scraped and clawed at the glass walls around him as the scientist closed the top.  _ Let me out! Don’t close it!  _ A tube in the back began filling the glass tube.  _ NO! LET ME OUT! STOP!  _ He splashed around in the thick liquid as it got higher and higher. His body began to tingle, bursts of pain mixing with slowly spreading numbness. His harsh breathing picked up a new taste on his tongue through his breathing mask. A deep fog covered his mind the more he breathed it in so he tried to hold his breath but the numbing effect of the liquid made it hard to control his body as it weakened to his will.

X13 looked over and met the Eevee in the tube to his side’s eyes. He tried to reach out, pressing his paw against the glass, the liquid already high above his head, topping off the container. It placed it’s paw against it’s container too. With one last breath of that weird air, X13’s eyes fluttered shut.

Weeks passes in that tube. Spurts of consciousness came and went. When they did, it was always to one horror or another. He would watch an Eevee, a Vaporeon, a Sylveon, a mix be strapped to that table in the middle of the room, being injected with something as they writhed in pain, their cries muffled to him through glass, thick liquid filling his ears, and the fog over his mind. At one point he saw one of them cut open. He had to close his eyes for that one and let the sleep overtake him. Only a few times was it to an empty, dark room. Silence all-encompassing aside from the sound of the liquid around him bubbling with air and moving around him.

When he was dragged out, he felt slimy and his body felt different. It tingled with every step he took, like tiny little needles was every touch against his skin. He wasn’t washed down so he had to clean himself in his cage and oh how terrible did it taste. Many times a day would a scientist come, take him out, and take him to a new room where he would be placed on a glowing circular pad with lights flashing around him taking x-rays and pictures of the inside and outside of his body. For a short time, he thought his time on that table or in that tube was over.

A naive thought.

Once again, he was ripped from his cell, expecting to go to the scanning room. He was wrong. He was taken to that room with the tubes and the table and once again was strapped down. He didn’t struggle. Not this time. That was… until he saw the doctor with the scalpel. The sharp blade flashed threateningly in the harsh light of the room. He had seen it through the liquid of the tube. He had seen the way it cut open his fellow captive pokemon. He had seen the way their bodies lurched and their mouths gaped in pain as their blood flowed freely to the ground.

X13 struggled. He cried out against the white rope once again tied around his head. Tears filled and fell from his eyes.  _ Stop! Don’t get closer! _ The man held something in his other hand.

It was a stone of multiple colors. Bits of different evolutionary stones were fused together around a singular Everstone that typically kept pokemon holding it from evolving. X13 flinched as the scalpel ruffled through his fur and it’s cold blade touched his skin. At first, the pain wasn’t really there, just a small tingle with the minuscule slice. Then the blade got deeper and oh, this hurt  _ so much worse _ than the injections!

In the back of his mind, he heard his screams but he couldn’t register them as his. Every single sense focused in on the  _ pain _ . On the way the blade forcibly tore through each and every layer of flesh deeper and deeper. His vision flashed, coming and going in bursts of light and what he could see was blurred by tears. Something, probably the stone, was  _ inserted _ into him and the pain only increased because unlike the painless evolution process of a singular evolution stone, this was all of them. Foam built at his mouth, choking him around the white rope. He felt his body trying to take in the stones all at once but the Everstone center was keeping it from doing so. It felt as though it were ripping him from the inside out as none of them disintegrated into him to finish the evolutionary process painlessly and instead his flesh was pushed apart to make room for the unstable stone as the doctor began to stitch him up with the stone still inside of his body.

Even when he was all zipped up the pain didn’t cease. His body convulsed, trying and failing to evolve in a rapid process. He was lifted from the table that was now dripping with  _ his _ blood and carried over to an empty containment tube but none of it was registering. Every cell in his body working against him but also for him to keep him awake. The rope was removed in a waterfall of foam only to be replaced by the breathing mask. An Eevee already in a tube somewhat conscious watched his body jerk and spasm in horror, the light of evolution flickering. He was sealed in the tube and it began to fill with that slimy liquid.

Only when the sleep gas filtered through the breathing mask did the pain finally subside along with his consciousness.

X13 wouldn’t have cared if he never woke up after that.

But he did. The stone “didn’t work” they said. That corrupt stone that was made by evil hands by breaking apart individual evolution stones and fusing them together with quirks and pokemon moves that shouldn’t be possible but happened anyway with the right combination of them. They had to take it out and when they did they had to put a newer, better one in. So many times, X13 began to lose track of how long he was actually awake and any time he was awake he was only in pain so he didn’t care to stay awake and rather fell asleep again, barely eating and not even bothering to clean himself of that liquid.

Again and again and again and again until…

He opened his eyes in that tube full of that slimy liquid and his reflection did not reflect brown eyes back at him but rather the browns of his eyes had turned a myriad of colors. The rainbow blinked at him. From outside the glass, a scientist stood, eyes lighting up with a victorious glare as it spun around to go tell the others. As he was being pulled from the now-drained tank, X13 heard this:

“Experiment X13, first success in the Multi-Evolutionary Trials phase one. Ready for phase two.”

Through the pain, through the uncomfortable feeling of body no longer his own, through the fear, the sadness, the hunger, the loneliness, the  _ hate _ . Through that all, before X13 allowed himself to pass out into the bittersweet world of more nightmares than dreams, he could only think:

_ There’s a phase two? _

X13 supposes they are 100% terrible people. Only 98% terrible. 1% of goodness is the fact that they gave his body rest before they moved on to whatever X13 was but the rest wasn’t all that good ever. It was filled with nightmares and horrors too vicious to speak of. The other 1% was-

* **!BOOM!** *

X13 yelped as the cages began to shake, the stone walls of the cage hall releasing a bit of gravel that fell to the ground.  _ What was that?! _ He stood up, now used to the weight distribution of leaning more on his left than his right front leg. Another explosion shook the underground bunker that they were in. 

* **Ca** - **Chunk** *

X13 heard the jingle of keys and the hurried breath of a familiar human. Cages were being opened at a rapid rate followed by the hushed voice of a familiar human. The sound of wires and metal of the collars being cut and snapped by a familiar human. A few Eevee and their evolutions were jumping out, some too tired to do so, all freed by a familiar human.

That 1% good that rounded out the 100%...

Chika came into X13’s view. The familiar human. She had ginger hair pulled back in a ponytail and donned a white lab coat and was one of the doctors here. Out of all of them, X13 liked Chika the best. She was nice when the others weren’t looking and would even slip in a bit of extra food from time to time and now… Chika was freeing them. Whatever was causing the explosions and shaking she was using as a distraction.

“Hey there X13,” she whispered as her keys jiggled in the lock of his cage. For the first time in who knows how long, X13 felt hope. Actual hope. The cage door came swinging open and her hands came in with metal cutters to take off his collar.

* **Ca** - **Chunk** *

X13 and Chika froze when the door to the cage hall opened. “What are you doing?!” someone yelled. All of the freed Eevee ran out the now open door. Chika picked him up, not roughly by his scruff but gently, cradling X13 in her arms as though he were something to be protected. Something that  _ mattered _ . Not just some experiment. 

“This is wrong,” Chika stated definitively. “It’s time we stop th-” “It doesn’t matter if it is wrong or not!” the man yelled. “All For One will kill us all if he finds out we didn’t get them out before… You…” The man stalked up to her. X13 buried his face in her lab coat. “You did this, didn’t you? You cut the wires in the reactor, didn’t you?” Chika knelt and set X13 down, petting his head kindly, so sweetly, before standing. “That’s right, I did.” The man blanched. “It’s not just you he will kill, Chika! It’s all of us! And your family! What about them?” She glared. “You think I don’t know that? I still can’t stand here while we torture these Eevee!”

“Why you…” X13 froze when he directed his eyes down to him. “That’s the success subject,” he stated. “Fine, just hand over that one and the others can go safely, how does that sound?” X13’s head whipped up to Chika. She stepped protectively in front of him. “I can’t allow that either.” The man growled. “Fine, if you want it that way then so be it!” He whipped out a pokeball. “Go, Malamar!” Chika whipped out her own. “Run, X13,” she whispered. “Go, Mightyena!” The two pokemon clashed forces and X13 ran. He wasn’t fast, body abused, stitches hidden under his fur tugging at the seams, only three legs. Still, he ran like his life depended on it.

Because it did depend on it.

Behind him a rush of air blew him off his paws. He fell to the ground just as he heard a pained scream from Chika. X13 got to his paws and spun around. His heart dropped. Chika was on the ground, shielding Mightyena with her body. She looked up and met his eyes.

“Go…” her pained voice traveled over the hall. The man thrust out his hand. “Dark pulse, Malamar!” “X13, GO-”

The move hit and Chika  _ screamed _ .

\-----

_ Keys rattled against X13’s cage. The door opened to reveal a ginger-haired human. She smiled and pressed her finger to her lips. ‘Shh…’ Reaching in, she dropped an extra scoop of the tasteless, dry pebbles they gave for food. Winking, she pet his head gently, lovingly, before locking the cage and moving on. _

\-----

Something in X13 moved. Something he had never felt before. It bubbled beneath his skin, flooding his veins with a burning sensation. The man and his Malamar turned to him. “Now-” He stopped, taking in the sight before him.

Electricity crackled around X13. His fur glowed a sharp yellow and neck fur spiked out sharply. Before the man did not stand an Eevee but a Jolteon.  _ How dare he… HOW DARE HE!!!!!  _ It was a blur. X13 seemed to disappear with speed, flashing behind the man and his pokemon. Opening his mouth, a ball of electricity formed.  _ Electro Ball! _ Just as the two swirled around, he let it go.

* **BOOM** *

Vision clouded by dust, X13 didn’t stop, too blinded by rage to think property. His attacks came at a rapid pace, the screams of his enemies falling on deaf ears. Only when the entire structure shook again did the pokemon come to a halt. He panted heavily. When the dust cleared… He almost threw up at the ma- at the corpses before him. That was the only way to describe them. There was no way they could have survived whatever the hell he just did to them.

Before guilt could worm its way into his stomach, pain erupted inside him. X13 screeched, falling to the ground as his body rapidly shrunk in on itself.  _ What is this?! _ He spasmed on the ground as the pain took its course. It felt like his body was trying to repair itself which ended up not being too far off. The stone that had dissolved inside of him was now working its magic. The main Everstone part was trying to repair the evolutionary process. In a flash of light and a scream of pain, X13 went limp on the ground, sweat bulleting off him in waves. Rainbow eyes trailing down, his eyes met red fur.

He was… an Eevee again.

The bunker shook.  _ I have to go… _ Not daring to spare another glance at those he left in the wake of his wrath, X13, with much struggle, got to his paws and fled. He ran past cages still full of Eevee and and Vaporeon and Jolteon and mixes and so many more, all too weak to get up and escape, even when the opportunity presented itself to them. Tears trailed behind him. His vision was blurring and the air felt too thin but still he kept going. He took a turn and found stairs. It was hard to climb up them in his state but he managed and he burst through the door to the top to…

Green. And blue. And yellow.

The forest. What felt like years upon years was only a year underground and yet the forest and the  _ sky _ felt so foreign to him. It was  _ beautiful. _

But he did not have time to sit and admire. Not when he heard footsteps behind him. Suddenly, a long forgotten memory flashed in his head.

\-----

_ A Vaporeon and a Leafeon. Just their outlines and tears and that’s all. He remembers the forest shaking around them as they ran, the little Eevee on the Leafeon’s back before light. An explosion. Being thrown off as they all went flying.  _

\-----

And the pain. It’s always the PAIN! It was the pain as he turned tail and fled with his stitches ripping themselves out with every stride. The pain as his head throbbed every time his paw hit harshly hit the ground to propel him forward. The pain as his heart pounded against his ribcage with each breath that didn’t quite make it into his lungs.

The pain as he tripped and fell forward, his momentum throwing him into a roll on the ground.

X13’s vision spun, white spots filtering through his line of sight.  _ Get up _ , he willed himself. He tried but his paws slipped from beneath him. Angry voices were approaching at a rapid rate.  _ Get up… _ The closer they got the faster his small light of hope was dimming.  _ Get… up… _

“Oh dear!” a voice. It wasn’t like the angry voices chasing him. A human crouched before him. X13 wearily looked up. His vision was blurry but he made out a woman with pink hair styled in two hoops. “Are you-” “Over here!” one of the assumed doctors yelled. X13 felt fear spike in him. He struggled again to get to his paws. “No, no, no, don’t get up, you’re wounded” the woman hushed. A white apron was thrown over him. X13 cried out in pain as he was lifted and wrapped in the apron, quickly turning red. She looked over her shoulder for a split second and then she ran.  _ She’s saving me…?  _ X13 felt himself slip from consciousness and while he knew that there was more of a chance of his safety breaking than being preserved and that the collar around his neck would probably put this nice human in more danger than not but, as he fell asleep, somehow X13 knew he was safe.

When he woke up again, he was in the Pokemon Gardens.


	7. Akatani?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Serena proves herself and a promise is made to a shattered soul.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone doing today?

Izuku held his pokemon close to his chest, reading and rereading the papers before them in the dark lights of the basement.

It was a messy process of Chip telling him about his past and exactly how and why these things are happening to Izuku and his body. With the speech barrier, story telling orally didn’t really work. When you are trapped in a basement like this for extended periods of time, you have to do something to pass the time other than homework, sleeping, getting beaten to a pulp, and patching yourself up. So, aside from drawing, he had began teaching Chip to write a bit using the pencil or pen in his mouth.

And, well, after today, that would probably be sped up since Serena… Izuku shook his head. He couldn’t risk getting angry right now. Not if this new addition quirk/not quirk in his life was causing spasms and right now? Well, right now he had practically a hole in his back that Chip finished the stitches on for him not too cleanly that Izuku didn’t feel like agitating the wound.

Izuku didn’t have a particularly… fond memory with stitches. 

Chip shivered in his arms, an action not unfamiliar to Izuku as he would do the same randomly when his own memories came to haunt him outside the house. He gently pet the little Eevee in his arms. “It’s okay,” he whispered. “You aren’t there anymore. It’s okay.” Words he wished someone would tell him.

\-----

_ ‘I can help you, kid.’ _

\-----

Izuku shook his head and just continued to whisper the lies that he so forcibly believed. The lies he and Chip have clung to since day one: “It’s okay.”

After a while, a long while, Chip finally stopped shaking and relaxed against Izuku fully.The greenette looked down and met his pokemon’s rainbow eyes. “You know what I think? I think your eyes are pretty.” It was cheesy but sometimes cheesy works. Sometimes affirmation, acceptance, is needed. “I know you might not like them, but I do. You, rainbow and three-legged and all. I love all of that.” Chip’s eyes sparkled. Izuku smiled. “Thank you for telling me, Chip.” “Vee…” Izuku yawned. “Well, it is well past midnight. Probably. Let’s get some water from the kitchen and go to bed, hmm?”

The  _ kitchen _ . The _kitchen_ represented a lack in sanity that neither Izuku nor Chip chose to recognize. The ‘kitchen’ was the small bathroom on the other side of the basement which also acted as the bathroom. The only thing is…

Izuku and Chip went around back the workout equipment instead of just going straight across because certainly the bathroom and the _kitchen_ would have to be in different places in a normal house so  _ certainly _ there would be a different path one would take when going to the kitchen as opposed to going to the bathroom. So they took different paths. Entering the  _ kitchen _ the two crouched by the small sink and opened the cabinet. Ignoring the toiletries pressed to the far right of it, they turned their attention to the boxes of protein bars, a few probably going old by now but food was food, and the small plastic cups Izuku snatched from the children’s section at the PokeMart. At that time, he realized that the PokeMart was really just the PokeMart and shopping center in one for their town because of the small population of Vaniville Town. Izuku filled the two cups and set one on the floor for Chip while he drank his own. Washing them in the sink and putting them back under the sink, they walked out and…

The two went all the way behind the equipment only to turn around and go past the front of it to go to the  _ bathroom _ . And after the _bathroom_ they of course had to knock on their  _ bedroom door _ and open it and close it. If anyone asked where their acting talents came from, well, they’d say it came from need.

It was not the most efficient way of doing things but it helped them process their situation in maybe not the most healthy way but certainly the way that got them through the day without breaking down and accepting their way of living was wrong.

Because it wasn’t wrong. It wasn’t bad. They weren’t being tortured. They weren’t being locked up in a cage like things less than breathing, living. It wasn’t any of that.

It was OkAy.

All throughout the next week, Izuku skipped school despite his father’s wishes but even if the man went every day to check if he was in class with the teacher, Izuku sat in first hour to be marked there on attendance before disappearing and no one cared enough about him there to deny that he was or wasn’t there. They would just let Dad look at the attendance and there Izuku would be.

At lunch, Serena would always try to find him behind the school, for what Izuku didn’t know. He didn’t care. He was more pissed at her than anything at this moment and so he avoided her. Instead, during the day he would go to the mansion and set up a game or scavenger hunt or something, just find a rock, for Hitoshi, and he supposes her since she is there too, before going back into town because he is made at Serena, not Hitoshi. Hitoshi didn’t  _ betray _ him. But Izuku wanted the purple-haired boy and his Espurr to know that he and Chip still cared so he did that and every day that week he would see the rock they found outside on the front porch so he knew they saw it.

Sooner than he would have wished, and after avoiding the Pokemon Center for the past eight days, next Thursday came.

Izuku sat on the fence of the school long after school had let out, a cigarette sticking from between his lips letting out a steady stream of smoke. Chip whined from the ground. Izuku leaned over, elbows on his knees, hands clutching his hair. “I can’t, Chip! I won’t go!” The Eevee pawed at his leg again. “What’s the point? We can’t go with him. It will… it will only hurt more if we say goodbye…” Izuku didn’t want to admit that he had gotten attached to the man, to the adult. He hated that he did. “Dang it! Why did he have to come here? It was fine. It was  _ okay _ !” Chip stopped whining at that word, almost like a trigger in his mind, a trigger for both of them. Izuku glanced at the falling sun. The last bus would be coming soon to take Aizawa away forever. They would never see him again and everything would go back to normal. Izuku would forget about the man and his Umbreon and they would forget about them just like everyone else did and that is okay. That is normal. That is how it should be. That is how they will protect Inha and Mom. Just forget…

Izuku looked up when darkness fell over him. The sun had sunken below the buildings. He grit his teeth around the cigarette, tobacco filling his mouth.

“Dang it!”

____________________________

Shouta sighed as he waited for the bus at that shabby bus stop. Umbreon sat downcast beside him. The week had passed and Midoriya really didn’t show up at the Pokemon Center. A month and Shouta could not get anything out of the boy about his home life and now it was too late. He couldn’t press further without the angry boy completely turning on him. Though, after he leaves, he supposes if Midoriya turns on him or not wouldn’t matter. He could have at least tried harder even if Midoriya hated him for it.

* **honk** **honk** *

The bus came to a screeching halt before them. Shouta stood as the door opened and pulled out Umbreon’s pokeball. “Let’s go, boy.” Umbreon disappeared into the ball and it was pocketed. It wasn’t a bad month though he muses as he boards the bus. It did serve to calm him down and take away the stress of his least favorite month, October. He didn’t have to work and he had gotten pretty close to Hope. She’s a good cook, a stark contrast from the jelly packets he thrives off of.

\-----

_ ‘Ah, ah, ah,’ the woman tutted. ‘Yamada gave strict instructions that you were not allowed to live off of those tasteless things here!’ _

\-----

Of course Hizashi would do that. Yet, Shouta can’t find it in himself to be mad at the man. Aside from the Midoriya Issue, it was not a bad month per se. It was relaxing and gave him time to think. He’d have to apologize to everyone he unfairly treated in his bouts of stress-fueled anger back in Lumiose City. Shouta sank into his seat near the middle of the practically empty bus.

“ **Wait!** ”

He jolted. Shouta stood and held out his hand. “Don’t leave!” he all but shouted to the bus driver. The driver rolled his eyes. “I’m on the clock, sir. I’ll give you five minutes.” Shouta bowed deeply. “Thank you!” he yelled with emotion he didn’t know he could vocalize. Shouta practically threw himself off of the bus. Running down the dirt road to the bus stop was Midoriya Izuku, hair falling from the half-ponytail, black denim jacket slipping from his shoulders. The boy and his Eevee came to a halt, multiple feet away, a silent statement of their own separation that both felt.

Shouta crossed his arms. “Didn’t think you two would come.” Midoriya took a few gulps of breaths. “We just-” He looked up, eye wet but not crying. “Goodbye,” he finally got out and it was like a shot in the heart. Shouta looked the boy up and down. His eyes trailed to the little bit of arm exposed from the slip of the jean jacket that Midoriya had yet to fix in his exhaustion. It was just a bit but Shouta could make out the uneven skin of probably an improperly healed burn. He took in a sharp breath and right then and there, Shouta decided something. He crossed the gap the boy and his Eevee purposefully put between them.

“Not ‘Goodbye’,” he stated. Lifting his hand, he very much noticed the way Midoriya flinched a bit as he brought it gently upon the boy’s head. “It’s ‘See you soon.’” Viridian eyes stared at him in shock. Shouta let his hand fall and knelt down, petting Chip. “For you too.” Shouta stood. “I’ll make you a deal, Midoriya, Chip. You are twelve, right? So in two maybe three years you will probably be old enough to take the UA Trainer’s Academy entrance exam. It’s a three hour commute there and another three back, I know, but if you master that  _ impossible  _ ability of yours,” he winked, “I will put in a recommendation for you to take the recommendation exam. Or, I guess you only have two years so how about not mastering it but instead being able to use it without having a spasm immediately after, okay? How does that sound?”

…

…

…

“W- why…?” The boy hung his head, fists shaking by his side. “Why would you?” Shouta didn’t respond immediately. So many words he could have said. So many things that would not register in the boy and his pokemon, their minds too shrouded by anger and hate. He took an inaudible breath before replying with a smirk, imitating the boy’s false-confidence because sweet emotion isn’t something they recognize. “Well, because I care, obviously.” Midoriya flinched. He didn’t startle at the words. He  _ flinched _ because someone caring for him  _ hurt _ and, oh, how Shouta hated that. The raven-haired man knelt down and held out his hand between the two. “So? Do we have a deal?”

* **honk** **honk** * “I don’t have all day!” the bus driver yelled.

Midoriya lifted a hand, not willing to meet Shouta in the eyes. He placed it in Shouta’s open one. Chip sat so he could raise his front paw and do the same. “S- see you later, Hobo.” “Eevee.” Shouta cupped the hand and paw between his two hands. “Thank you,” he whispered.” Viridian eyes finally met his own black ones.

“I’m leaving, are you getting on or not.” Shouta sighed and stood, giving one last pat on the head to each. “I’ll be back,” he promised. “I won’t simply just disappear for two years. When I come back, I want to see your progress, okay?” The two nodded. “Y- yes, sir!” “Vee!” Shouta’s heart swelled. He called him ‘Sir.’ He accepted him as an authority figure even though the boy hates adults.

Shouta vowed to make good on the trust he built with these two. He waved and got back on the bus. “See you later.” Shouta bowed to the bus driver. “Thank you for waiting.”

Sitting back in his seat, Shouta looked out and waved again. As the bus drove off, he watched from the windows in the back of the bus as Midoriya’s hand came and felt his hair, the touch of affection given to him such a foreign thing. Tears finally fell from the boy’s as he dropped to his knees and Shouta… well, no one was there to tell the story if he shed a tear or two as well.

____________________________

Izuku and Chip were silent as they walked back into town. 

Too many things, too many emotions, to process. Hope wasn’t something he was used to. For such an offer to be extended to him, Izuku should have denied it. He  _ should have _ . He didn’t. He accepted it but with his own mental reservations. Aizawa said he’d come back so Izuku decided he would give the man three months. If he didn’t come back by then… well, it would just be one more thing to add to the list of reasons not to trust adults.

“Izuku.” He and Chip stopped. The greenette looked up. Serena and Fennekin jumped off of the school fence. “Can we talk?” she asked. He sighed. “I don’t really see the point.” She looked down. “I wanted to apologize-”

“And?” Izuku cut her off. “You ‘apologize’ every time you don’t join me at lunch. You ‘apologize’ whenever you laugh with your  _ friends _ when they make fun of me and Chip. You ‘apologize’ every time you choose them over me. So what does this apology mean over them?” Izuku walked past her. “What can I do to make you believe me?” she begged. Izuku looked over his shoulder. He saw her hopeful eyes.  _ Hopeful _ . She has not experienced the hopelessness of his world. She smiles and laughs. Izuku needs to protect that smile, that laugh.

“Nothing,” he states. “I would never ask you to give up your friends, Serena. I’m used to the laughs and being ignored. You aren’t.” He smiled. “Enjoy your friends. It’s okay.” Without another word, he turned and left. “I- Izuku! Chip!” The greenette curled his fists and didn’t turn back. Such a drastic change between the emotions he just showed to Aizawa. 

Izuku didn’t even look up at Dad when he entered the man’s house. Izuku stopped referring it to his own recently. The man didn’t say anything either as he was led to the closet, as usual.

“ **Mikumo!** ”

The greenette froze. He looked up and saw Inha coming out of her room, his old room.  _ Mikumo _ , she calls him because in this house- Izuku doesn’t dare look up at the pictures on the walls that no longer hold him in them -Dad has erased the presence of Midoriya Izuku. He crouches by the girl. “Inha,” he greets, a bit too coldly, forcing his heart to rid itself of emotions attached to her, whether it be anger, resentment, or even… love. “Look at what I drew!” She held up a piece of paper. Izuku glanced down at Chip. 

_ What is that…? _

He sweatdropped. “It’s so good!” he exclaimed. Inha beamed. “Mommy! Mommy!” she ran to the green-haired woman behind her. “Mikumo likes it!” Mom crouched by her and pats the girl on her head lovingly.

Izuku could still feel Aizawa’s hand lingering on his own head. His heart hurt.

“Come on, Mikumo,” Dad said calmly. “Awww,” Inha pouted. Izuku swallowed thickly and stood. “Sorry, Inha, I have… homework to do.” He waved. Mom stood and picked up the little girl. “Let’s go to the living room, Inha.” Because they didn’t want her to see Izuku being put in the basement. The two green-haired beings passed in the hallway.

Izuku glanced up at Mom. She kept her eyes down. She had the  _ gall _ to have tears in her eyes.

“Mi-” “I’m going,” he hissed and finished the walk to the closest. As Dad followed him down the stairs, they creaked ominously. Izuku’s foot didn’t even touch the cold, cement ground before a foot planted itself in his back and he was set flying. “Get dressed, brat.” He felt his heart already speeding up, fear wiggling its way deep into his bones. He and Chip ran to his room. Izuku didn’t even bother knocking but he did still  _ open _ the door. Part of him knew that Dad enjoyed seeing his mental state deteriorate the more he acted as though there were actually a door and walls there.

It helped Izuku pretend the man wasn’t watching him change. He was lucky Dad hadn’t tried something sexual with him. He wouldn’t put it past him at this point. The older he got, he came to realize what those sounds and screams he heard when he was younger between Dad and Mom was the man raping her. And then she had a child. Izuku shivered at the thought. 

Dad cracked his knuckles when he and Chip came out. “I don’t know where you get off getting all chummy with my daughter,” he growled. Izuku held his head low. He heard Smokey storm up behind him.  _ What was I supposed to do? Not say anything? _ He had tried that once and Dad got mad at him for making Inha cry. He winced, tears coming to his eyes as Dad buried his hand into Izuku’s green locks and lifted the boy from the ground. “I’ll make you remember that you aren’t part of this family,  _ Mikumo _ .” Izuku looked the man in his black eyes, fear lacing his own viridian.

Black like Aizawa’s but oh so different. Aizawa was more of a father than Dad was. With a sad heart, Izuku blocks out that thought. Aizawa would never be his father. And Hisashi…? Izuku’s not part of this family either. He doesn't belong to this family. Mo- Inko disowned him, Hisashi tortures him, and Inha is just a little girl who is none the wiser.

And that’s okay.

Because that doesn’t matter while he is up there. That can be  _ Mikumo’s  _ problem. Izuku can just hide away from society down here when Hisashi leaves. He was swung to the side, Hisashi preparing to throw him. Mikumo’s problem! Izuku is okay! Izuku is OKAY! He was thrown across the room and smashed into the bench-press barbell.

* **CRACK** *

Mikumo’s problem…

“Hey, Chip?” Izuku whispered, laying on his stomach so as to not agitate his back. “Vee…?” 

…

…

…

“We’re okay, right?” … “Chip?” Something fluffy curled up next to him. “Eevee,” Chip replied definitively. Izuku smiled. “R- right. Sorry, I forgot for a second there.” Izuku pressed his face into his hard pillow, worn out over time. “We’re okay…”

____________________________

“Inko,” the green-haired woman flinched, hand still lingering on her daughter’s doorknob after putting the little girl to bed, “why did you bring Inha out when Mikumo came back?” Inko held her tongue, not willing to look Hisashi in the eye. The man had other plans.

Hisashi leaned down into her line of sight with a knowing grin. “You did it on purpose, didn’t you? You are trying to make Mikumo part of her life.”

“Izuku,” Inko couldn’t help herself from biting back. “His name is Izuku.” Hisashi tutted, his warm hand coming over hers and drawing her away from the door which she knew he knew she was using as a source of protection. He would never do anything while she was by Inha’s door. “You know better, my love,” he dragged her to the living room, forcing her to sit on the couch with him. “He isn’t part of this family anymore. I thought we agreed on this?” Inko snapped her head up, anger in her eyes. “I would never cut Izuku from my life!” She shivered as the man ran his hands under her shirt. “H- Hisashi, wait,” she tried to pull away but the hand around her waist wouldn’t permit much movement, already smoking painfully against her skin. "Not today..."

“It will be easier, Inko, if you just accept the fact that this ‘Izuku’ doesn’t exist,” Hisashi pushed her to a lying position. “Accept the- I gave birth to hi- AH!” Inko threw her head back as a practically boiling hand rested itself on her stomach. “H- Hisashi, it burns!” The man grinned. “I know you like a little pain to our fun, dear.” Inko felt herself shiver, not of pleasure but fear. Out of pain. Hisashi roughly pressed his mouth against hers. He was angry. She could feel it in his touches. She should have kept her mouth shut but… Izuku is her son! Hisashi was trying to make it seem like those six years were just an-

“Illusion, my love,” Hisashi stated when he finally disconnected from her, letting Inko cough and hack out smoke. “He was nothing more than an illusion. It would be easier for you if you only believed that. Why don’t we focus on the real child, okay?” He ran his hand along her cheek, tilting her head back. “Don’t worry, I’ll help you forget.”

Inko couldn’t fight back. She couldn’t scream or kick or else Inha would wake up and she couldn’t let that happen. Inha loved Hisashi. She loved Inko too. What kind of mother would Inko be if she were to let her daughter see the horrors Hisashi committed to her.

What kind of mother was she if she allowed Hisashi to continue what he was doing to Izuku…?

\-----

_ ‘He was nothing more than an illusion. It would be easier for you if you only believed that.’ _

____________________________

There’s a test today in math so Izuku decided to attend school today. He attends a full school day at least once a week. Other times he will usually hang around outside the window until he finds out the homework and leaves. He sighed as the bell for lunch rang. Izuku stood to disappear behind the school. He had a fight today.

He doesn’t know when the news about him taking out those two kids got around but now every once in a while he’d be challenged to a fight, a kid wanting to knock him down a peg or something. He had to admit, they had balls going against whatever rule Bakugou put up regarding just leaving him be. Balls didn’t matter though when you suck at fighting.

Izuku never lost a fight.

“ **Shut up!** ” he stopped just outside the classroom door as Serena yelled. Izuku looked over his shoulder. The girl was standing, practically fuming. The whole class was staring. She pointed at her friends. “You don’t know him like that!” Viridian eyes widened. Was this how she planned on making it up to him? By announcing her loyalty like this?  _ She doesn't need to do that! It’s okay! _ “Woah, chill, Serena,” one girl said. “Why are you getting so heated? It’s only Deku.” Serena slammed her hands on the table. “ _ Izuku _ . It’s Izuku! He’s a person! What gives you the right to call him names like this and make fun of him? He can’t help that he is a bit shorter than us or that he doesn’t have an element. He was born like that. It’s not his fault so just shut u-”

* **SLAP** *

Serena reeled back, hand on her cheek. Her friend narrowed her eyes. “You shut up, idiot. Do you even know what you are talking about? You’ve laughed at him too. You ignore him. What? You have a crush on him or something.” She spat. “Disgusting. You need to open your eyes or you will just be out-”

* **BAM** *

Someone screamed. Izuku blinked as the girl before him fell, his fist stinging.  _ Huh? When did I get here? _ She fell, knocked out cold. The class was silent. _Fine_. Izuku turned to them, cracking his knuckles, anger boiling in his gut. “So this is how it is, huh? It’s not about being elementless or quirkless, is it? You will turn on anyone, won’t you? And here I thought I was just the outlier. Who's next if doing the right thing costs you your friends?” A few glanced at each other skeptically. Izuku smirked. “Yeah, that’s right. Your best friend might not even  _ like  _ you.” He narrowed his eyes. “You are all petty.”

A boy, the one who challenged him today, stepped up. “Shut your trap, Deku.” Izuku grinned at him. “Make me.” The boy didn’t. Izuku knew he wouldn’t. From the front, Bakugou sighed. “This is dumb. You said your words, Deku, now scram.” Izuku scoffed but turned around, holding out a hand to Serena. “Let’s go.” She nodded. Her eyes gave it away though before the warning got out.

“Izuku!”

His head tilted to the side just before the fist hit. He spun on instinct, leg coming up, and nailed the boy in the side sending him crashing into a desk before he fell to the ground. A few who were also approaching froze, seeing just how fast Izuku reacted. He sighed and looked up at them. They all swallowed thickly. Izuku turned to the kid on the ground, now staring up at him in fear, and spat.

“ _Pathetic_.”

Izuku took Serena’s hand and dragged her from the classroom and out of the school in general. Rounding to the back, Izuku dropped her hand and kicked the metal dumpster with a * **BANG** *. The girl flinched, head down. Izuku sighed, pressing his forehead against it. He glanced over at her. Dang, she looked like she was about to cry right then and there. He felt bad but… also a bit happy? Was that so wrong? To find joy that someone actually cared enough to throw their reputation like that for him? Izuku stood straight and strode over to her. “Izuku, I-” she stopped when his arms came around her. 

“Y- you didn’t have to do that, idiot!” he tried his best to sound angry through his watery voice. Serena sniffed before returning the hug. “You are my friend, Izuku, and a better friend than any of them are.” Izuku held her tightly. “Thank you…” She grinned. Does this mean you will come to the mansion today?” Izuku chuckled, stepping back. “Sure, why not?”

  
  


“Izukuuuuuuuu!” “Espurr!” The greenette had to brace himself for the collision between him, Chip, Hitoshi, and Espurr. “Y- you’re crushing me!” he gasped. “Shut it,” Hitoshi griped. “This is what you get for disappearing on us.” Izuku gasped. “Death by hug! The worst way to go!” They all laughed before they split.

“Good to have you back,” Hitoshi held out a fist.

“Good to be back,” Izuku bumped his own against it.

Training started slowly but Izuku was determined to figure out this newfound power of his. First things first came getting Chip mentally ready for it. It took a week of talking and their own brand of counseling.

The “Okay Therapy”.

Not healthy by any means but what gets you to the next day gets you to the next day right? Izuku also decided to spread the news to Hitoshi and Serena. Not exactly how it was possible because that was Chip’s story to tell when he felt comfortable with it.

\-----

_ ‘Are you sure you want to help?’ he asked. ‘It might be scary. I usually spasm after it apparently.’  _

_ ‘Of course!’ Serena chirped. ‘You are helping me already with designing costumes and both of you help me choreograph. It’s time I start pulling my weight around here.’ _

_ Hitoshi nodded. ‘We got you.’ _

_ ‘Also, I don’t think that is the issue,’ Serena mused. ‘I mean, it is definitely part of it but you had a spasm at the summer camp when we were six, right? But you didn’t, um, transform?’ _

_ Izuku blinked. ‘Oh yeah.’ He narrowed his eyes. ‘So I just-’ he sighed. _

_ Hitoshi patted his back. ‘It’s okay. Everyone has issues. You’ve only noticed them when that happens so it is probably okay.’ _

_ Izuku blinked. ‘Right.’ _

\-----

The worst part of it was that Izuku could not get it medically checked if he had an actual issue. When Hitoshi and Serena asked why he didn’t go get it checked, he didn’t provide much of an excuse but they had known him for long enough that some areas, specifically areas surrounding his parents, weren’t to be pressed upon.

So they took it upon themselves to look it up on the internet, as any smart adolescent would. They did know better than to believe everything that was read though.

He couldn’t tell if it was epileptic or not but he did look at the symptoms and what might have caused them originally.

\-----

_ ‘Head damage,’ he read the cause out loud definitively. _

_ ‘Head damage?’ Serena asked. ‘What from?’ _

_ … _

_ … _

_ … _

_ She looked away. ‘Nevermind…’  _

\-----

That and bad blood sugar but he already let the head damage part slip. He didn’t need them knowing that he and Chip survived off of protein bars and the occasional bowl or rice from Hisashi. The convulsion and jerking symptoms were the ones he had the most but the occasional hallucination was something he noticed every once in a while. Phantom pains creeping up his body, the images of fire engulfing him. Izuku didn’t like thinking about it.

He supposes it would be fine for now unless he had one that was longer than a one to two minutes because the website said that could cause brain damage or something and Izuku doesn’t really feel like adding brain damage, or _more_ brain damage, to the lists of things already wrong with him.

The true problem came with activating the ‘evolution’. No one knew how to do it. The most they had to go off of was that Izuku was usually really angry or some other strong emotion was fueling him when it happened and even then the evolution wasn’t complete. Chip would be stuck in a mid-evolutionary state which usually wouldn’t be painful but that coupled with being stuck in the changing of cells process and the wounds that were hidden under his fur trying to switch over too… it hurt Chip a lot. It hurt Izuku too he found out when they first got the initial trigger to happen. 

The whole ‘choking up water’ thing ended up actually being real.

They decided that he should try and ‘be in the element’ or at least around it so they searched around in the forest until they found a small pond. Izuku and Chip sat in it for a while, heads above water, thinking about anything and everything that would start the process.

Their thought process, after being in there so long they were shaking, just came down to:

“DANG IT! JUST EVOLVE!”

And as Izuku threw his hands up, angrily splashing water, Chip let out a strangled cry and the process began. It felt weird. He wasn’t used to this change. He never felt a change by getting an element or a quirk like his skin getting hotter when one gets a fire element. So when the fluid in his inner ear (this is something you can actually look up) changed and he lost balance, Izuku fell head first into the water. He thrashed as he could not put his world back on the right axis and get above water. Before he even lost air he felt water flooding his lungs. He distantly heard yelling but when hands came to pull him out, Izuku could only feel Hisashi’s. He fought against them, coughing up water, searching, reaching out for  _ AIR! _

It hit that Serena had only seen one of his spasms and Hitoshi has never seen them and that it was minusculy traumatizing for the two twelve-year-old children to see that from their friend and worse that they were in a forest without medical help.

\-----

_ ‘Are you sure?’ _

_ ‘Hitoshi-’ _

_ ‘I can get you a blanket!’ _

_ ‘I’m fi-’ _

_ ‘Maybe you should lay down again.’ _

_ * **sigh…** * _

\-----

Now, in one of the bedrooms of the mansion there was an  _ Izuku Room _ for when he passed out after each try. He liked it. He and Chip got to sleep (*cough* lay unconscious) in a bed they definitely cleaned the dusty bedding of first that was so much softer and actually fit his whole body than the hard in the basement that his feet dangled off of. There was also a _Hitoshi Room_ and a _Serena Room_ , each respectively for training and resting on their own endeavors.

They decided against working on it daily though. One, it was harmful to his brain to do that every day and they weren’t improving much. Izuku could only hope Aizawa came back with some idea on how to do whatever they were attempting. So during the meantime, when they weren’t being children messing around in a giant, abandoned mansion in a forest, they practiced other things such as Serena and Fennekin and their dancing and Hitoshi, Espurr, Izuku, and Chip’s fighting.

No one questioned their strange proficiency with fighting. Not after the first time.

\-----

_ ‘Arg!’ Hitoshi sat up, rubbing his back. ‘How are you so good at this, Izuku?’ _

_ The greenette laughed. ‘I- I guess it’s just beginner’s luck?’ _

_ ‘Bull,’ Hitoshi got up. ‘Come on, you have training or something? You gotta tell me where!’ _

_ Izuku’s face went blank. ‘Training,’ he stated. _

_ Serena looked up from her video at the tone of his voice. Hitoshi didn’t know what line he crossed but they had known the boy long enough to recognize when something was a trigger to the green-haired boy. _

_ Hitoshi chuckled warily. ‘Nevermind that. Tr- Experience or not, it don’t matter. Let’s just work hard!’ _

\-----

He felt bad sometimes when he shut off like that. Around them, his facade had begun to slowly crumble but when he heard or remembered something that reminded him of Hisashi or the basement, it rebuilt faster and stronger than ever before. His false confidence, fake smiles, and sort of jerkish attitude. Izuku was lucky to have such good friends that they understood, even if they didn’t understand 100%.   
  


“Take that out of your mouth!” Serena all but yelled, dropping a bucket of water and pointing at Izuku who was draping himself lazily over the railing of the second floor. He looked up, letting out a puff of smoke from the corner of his mouth. “No.” The girl rolled her eyes. Hitoshi came out of the hallway, walking past Izuku. “Rough day?” Izuku shrugged but he knew they knew. Izuku only smoked when the night before was particularly bad with Hisashi or when he had a fight behind the school. Hitoshi hummed. “Well forget all that and help us clean.” Izuku let out a bedraggled sigh, sliding off the railing. “Eevee!” Chip pressed on his back. “I’m coming, I’m coming!”

Espurr floated up a duster to him as he stood. “Thanks, Espurr.” He took it and got to work.

Today was cleaning day. They divided the building into three sections and dusted, mopped, wiped, and sanitized every surface. Even little things like this Izuku had come to enjoy. Anything to keep him out of the Midoriya’s house a bit longer. He even packed a workout outfit for today to protect the clothes he got from Hitoshi. By now he has practically an entire wardrobe of clothes from the boy which he is pretty sure some of it Hitoshi went and bought new for him instead of it just being old clothes. 

Zuku is eternally grateful to Hitoshi for the clothes. Not only is it stuff that semi-fits him, it gives Izuku the confidence to stand up for himself outside of the house. It made him feel like his own person again. Not some dog Hisashi pushes around. Even if Izuku can’t shake the paralyzing dread that forces him into submission before the man when inside the house, outside he is like a whole other person.

Fear still follows him though. Fear that his friends will find out. Fear that if they get too close they will see just how weak he truly is. How he cowers in fear in the shadow of Hisashi and Smokey. How he screams and cries instead of laughs and brushes off the children at school. It terrifies him almost as much as what Hisashi would do to Inha and Inko if anyone found out about what he did to Izuku and Chip nightly.

“Whew!” Izuku wiped his forehead with his bare arm, coming out of the bathroom, that didn’t work, after changing back into normal clothes, his black hoodie hanging on the coat rack just inside the front door that was missing a peg. He had gotten comfortable enough around Hitoshi and Serena to expose his arms and legs, having to change into workout clothes for training. He knew they saw the scars lacing his body, painted on like an artist’s work on his canvas. It warmed his cold heart that they didn’t bring them up knowing it would make him uncomfortable.

“Looks good, boys,” Serena and the two stood at the bottom of the grand staircase, looking around at the sparkling clean mansion. Izuku looked over at Hitoshi. “Going back to Santalune City this month?” Hitoshi nodded. “Yeah, it’s my dad’s turn.” Izuku hummed. “See you soon,” he patted the boy’s back. Serena rolled her eyes before throwing her arms around them. “You emotionally constipated boys!”

They laughed.

“See you, Hitoshi,” they truly did split this time, the sun already far below the tree line. Izuku slipped his hoodie over his head. “Are you going to be okay tonight?” Serena asks hesitantly as she watches him fiddle with the sleeve, making sure that the sleeves reached just a bit past his palm to cover any straggling scars once they stopped outside the Rhyhorn field. He looked up at her and smiled. “Of course! I’m always okay!” The girl raised an eyebrow but smiled. “Whatever you say. See you tomorrow, Izuku, Chip.”

Izuku’s smile fell as the girl and her Fennekin disappeared into the night. “Let’s go, Chip.”

The walk back to the Midoriya household was quiet. It always was. Returning to that place was never a joyous occasion. The closer they got, Izuku felt his confidence dwindling, like a lighting rod it was sapping all of the day’s smiles, replacing it with a face of careful anger and a heart of masked fear. Izuku sighed and opened the door.

“MIKUMO!”

He jumped. Inha came running up to him. Izu- Dad stood behind her in the entryway of the living room -Mikumo barely had time to crouch and catch the girl in his arms. “I- Inha! What is the rush?” She beamed up at him and held up her hand. Izuku’s heart fell. Mikumo’s eyes widened and a smile split his face, fake. Midoriya Inha, nearing four years of age… 

“You got your element!” he cheered. The flame emblem on her hand shown a deep red, similar to the one on Hisashi’s inside wrist but the wisps of flame were in a different pattern and his had horns like a Houndoom announcing his bond with the pokemon. “It’s fire!” she chirped. So happy. Mikumo’s eyes crinkled at the edges. “That’s great, Inha. I am so happy for you.”

And he truly was because if she didn’t get an element…

\-----

_ ‘D- Daddy! It h- hurts!’ _

\-----

“ **Yes** ,” Hisashi’s voice was like a whip to the green-haired boy, “ **_it’s amazing._ ** ”

Chip pressed further against him, shaking. He reached over and placed a reassuring hand on the Eevee’s head. “You have to eat with us tonight!” Inha grabbed his other hand as Mikumo tried to stand. “You have to celebrate with us!” Mikumo gave a wary chuckle. “I- I don’t know, Inh-”

“Sure, why don’t you,  _ Mikumo _ ,” Hisashi smirked. “After all, it’s what Inha wants.” Mikumo couldn’t refuse without risking his life further.

Dinner was torture. He had to sit by Hisashi and whenever the man wasn’t using his right hand, it was on Mikumo’s leg, BuRnInG. His body, so unfamiliar with the feeling of being full, unused to the sheer amount of food that Hisashi made him eat, knowing that Mikumo couldn’t handle it, ached painfully. HIs stomach felt as though it were ripping at the seams. And then that name:

“Would you pass the salt,  **_Akatani_ ** ?” They gave him a last name. “Akatani?” Inha asked. Inko smiled down at her  _ daughter _ . “It’s Mikumo’s last name.” He was not just Mikumo anymore because that gave too much room to call him a Midoriya but Hisashi made it VERY CLEAR that wasn’t the case. The worst part was that Inko gave it to him.

SHE called him Akatani Mikumo! SHE did! 

“I thought we call close friends by their first name!” Inha inquired.

Inko ruffled her hair. “We do, sweetie.”

“Then why are you calling Mikumo by his last name? Is Mikumo not close to us?”

The woman smiled. “ **Let’s talk later, Inha.** ”

The second those names came from her mouth, the pain in his leg and in his stomach faded behind the indescribable pain in his heart. Chip whimpered by his side. Izuku- NO! Izuku is OKAY. Mikumo smiled down at the pokemon. “It’s okay,” he stated with confidence. Hisashi finally lifted his hand from Mikumo’s leg, though the nerves there were so burned he didn’t notice until the hand rested on his shoulder. “Well, Mikumo needs to do some work.”

Inha whined. Mikumo came around the table, slipping out from Hisashi’s grasp. He ruffled her hair. “Congratulations, Inha.” He turned to Hisashi. “Shall we go?” Everything felt so numb.  _ Akatani Mikumo. Akatani Mikumo. Akatani Mikumo. She said AkAtAnI MiKuMo.  _ It was all he could think.

“Isn’t it great?” Izuku stopped at the bottom of the stairs and looked up at Hisashi with dead eyes. The man smiled. He  _ enjoyed _ the way Izuku’s spirit was being crushed under his smoking palms. “It’s fire too,” the man ran his hands along Izuku’s shoulders. The boy shivered. Hisashi leaned down. “Aren't you glad?” A puff of smoke was blown into Izuku’s face. He choked, coughing harshly.

* **BAM** *

The first to his stomach sent Izuku doubling over to the ground, throwing up the meal he had just barely stomached. Cracking knuckles from above drew his eyes up.  _ Please…  _ Hisashi grinned maliciously down at him.  _ Stop… _ “I guess you will just have to step up your game, now won’t you, Akatani. Don’t want to fall behind, now do you?”  _ Just kill me now. _ Sadly, the world wasn’t on his side and the foot hit his jaw without any attempt to dodge from the child beneath it.

_ Just kill me… _

____________________________

He couldn’t breathe.

“Change, change, change,” he mumbled to himself. Chip pawed at his leg, whining loudly.

The needle shook as he pressed it against his right earlobe.

“Be different from them. You aren’t them. Be different. Be different.”

Pain, lost on the boy, burst from his ear.

“BE DIFFERENT.”

The needle went through, the pain numb to him. Blood flowed from his ear as he removed the needle. His hands shook as he pressed in the earring he found behind the school.

Be different. Change yourself. Wear different clothes. Do different things. Because you aren’t them. You aren’t  _ Midoriya _ and the further you are from the Midoriya’s then the further you are from them then the further you are from the  _ hurt _ . The pain from the  _ rejection _ . But it’s not rejection if you aren’t them. You were never Midoriya. You were ALWAYS just Izuku. Izuku doesn’t belong to Midoriya. Izuku doesn’t belong anywhere and that is okay. Okay because he wasn’t rejected. He WaSn’T. If he doesn’t belong then he can’t  _ be _ rejected and it doesn’t  _ hurt _ and it’s  _ okay _ but because he didn’t belong he needed to ChAnGe.

Wear different clothes. Do different things. Act different. Live in a different house, even if it is just below their house. It isn’t their house. He may torture you in your house but it isn’t his house because you aren’t of them. You aren’t Midoriya.

CHANGE. Change and it will be okay.

He reaches up and dabs his finger into the blood welling around the new hole in his ear. He reaches up to the bathroom mirror and draws the letters across the glass. As his hand drops by his side, the boy giggles, stumbling back against the cold wall.

“Izuku is okay,” he giggles. “Izuku is okay. Izuku is Izuku and Izuku is okay.” He cleans up the blood from his ear and hand but not from the mirror, looking up at it and smiling before turning off the lights and skipping out of the  _ bathroom _ leaving a frightened Eevee behind.

____________________________

“You are going back?”

Shouta looked up from grading papers. Hizashi leaned against his desk in the teacher’s lounge, arms crossed. “Yeah,” he replied. “For that kid?” the man smirked. Shouta rolled his eyes, standing. “It’s just for the weekend to check up on him. I want to make it there at least once a month.” He packed up his belongings and left.

“I’m glad, Shouta,” Hizashi’s voice stopped him just outside the door. “It’s been a while since I’ve seen you like this.”

Shouta looked over his shoulder. He offered a rare smirk. “Thanks, Hizashi.”

____________________________

Chip watches his boy leave their  _ bathroom _ in a fit of crazed giggles and laughs. He looks up from the bathroom floor to the mirror. In the dim light coming from outside the small room, streaks of blood shine ominously above him.

**O** - **K** - **A** - **Y**

It’s wrong. It’s so wrong. The laughs from the  _ bedroom _ are so wrong. The paths between  _ kitchen _ and  _ bathroom _ are so wrong. Everything is so wrong. It is not okay! It’s not… But Chip can’t stop it. At least, not now.

He needs to work harder, do better, be better. If he can just evolve correctly then maybe, just maybe Hisashi will begin to see them in a new light and stop this before Izuku really falls apart. Oh, but Izuku doesn’t want to tell Hisashi their powers. He says it’s dangerous. So what then?

Aizawa.

That man knows. But can they trust him? Will he really even come back? He has to come back. He’s the only hope Chip has for Izuku’s sanity and maybe even for his own. His own is lingering on protecting Izuku’s at this point and it’s not looking too swell at the moment. He has to do better. Be better. Work harder.

Aizawa will come. He has to believe that. For now-

“Chip?”

Chip leaves the  _ bathroom _ and runs up to the  _ bedroom door _ . He pushes it open, assuming Izuku left it  _ cracked _ for him before turning around and pushing it closed. The Eevee runs up to his boy who lays on the bed too small for him. As he curls up against Izuku’s chest, he purrs loudly, trying to do anything he can to comfort the greenette, to shake him from his insanity-induced state.

For now, they can’t trust anybody. Adults are all liars, and so maybe is Aizawa. He can’t put 100% of his faith in the man meaning that it is up to him to protect his boy. So for now he will-

Work harder.

Do better.

BE BETTER.

And try not to break alongside his boy.


	8. Time Keeps Moving

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A bit of a fast chapter with many months and years in one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone? I might not get a chapter out tomorrow or the next day but we will see!

Izuku didn’t expect Aizawa to come back. Not really. Ne truly hoped the man would, not so he would take him from the situation Izuku was stuck in at home, but to help him get into UA Trainer’s Academy. So the man’s sarcastic remarks made him smirk a little. So the man was a no bull, straightforward kinda guy like Izuku. So he made a promise and was one of the few adults Izuku could tolerate. That doesn’t mean Izuku missed the man. Nope! Not at all! He had been in Vaniville Town for a month and had been gone for a month. Izuku did not care for or miss the man at all.

He says that but… he won’t admit it but when the hobo actually did show up again a month after leaving, well, Izuku felt almost… happy?

He was skipping school, naturally, and smoking a cigarette, of course, as he swung upside down at the edge of the forest on one of the trees. Even if Aizawa showed up, the forested area of Vaniville Town, small and actually a bit out of town, was not a place the man knew him to hang around. He takes another puff before taking the cigarette out of his mouth between two fingers and pointing to the dirt patch Chip was drawing in.

“I’m thinking something a bit more skin tight for this,” he stated. “I know she doesn't like it too much but Serena can’t just be like every other performer. Her costumes need to be unique, you know?” Chip looked up at him. “Eevee!” He looked back down and smoothed out some of the dirt a bit before redrawing it closer, tighter together.

* **SNAP** *

Both heads looked up in shock at the sound of a phone camera going off. “I like it,” a familiar voice hummed. Viridian and rainbow eyes bulged. “Hob- AH!” Izuku’s legs lost their grip on the branch and the boy fell. A strong pair of arms swiftly caught him. The greenette blinked up, meeting black eyes. He almost forgot that he was being held. “Hey, kid.” Izuku wriggled in the man’s hold, forcing Aizawa to put him down lest he actually fall. Izuku jumped back and pointed his cigarette at the man.

“You came back?!” he shouted. Aizawa raised an eyebrow. “Well, I’m not a ghost or anything now am I?” Izuku blushed. He pulled himself together and slipped his cigarette back between his lips. “Ha. So you aren’t some wimp after all,” he crossed his arms. The man rolled his eyes. “A promise is a promise.”

Izuku’s own darkened.  _ Promise, ey? Yeah right. _

He snapped out of his musings when he heard Chip and Umbreon, the two chasing each other. His face softened just a bit. Chip enjoyed the older pokemon’s presence. Izuku flinched when a hand came to ruffle his hair. “I don’t know who broke theirs,” the raven-haired man spoke softly, “but I’m not the type of person, the type of adult,” Izuku’s eyes widened slightly, “who breaks their promises.” His hands shook by his sides. Izuku couldn’t hold back his glare as he swatted the man’s hand away. “Whatever. You came back and that’s what matters, Hobo.” Aizawa looked almost saddened by his reaction but it was quickly gone. “That’s right, I am. I hope you’ve been keeping up your side of our deal.”

Chip stopped, squealing when Umbreon ran into him. The three looked up at Aizawa. Izuku smirked. “Don’t get all high and mighty, Hobo. I’ve kept up!”

“Prove it.”

____________________________

Shouta walked around in the expansive building.

\-----

_ ‘You can’t tell anyone about this,’ Midoriya warned. ‘This’ was a giant abandoned mansion in the forest. The boy called it his, Serena’s, which ended up being that girl Midoriya was fighting with when Shouta first discovered his power, and Hitoshi’s, who Shouta didn’t know yet, secret base.  _

\-----

It truly was quite the sight. To think this was hidden here. After taking a quick check of the building, being the responsible adult he was and making sure this place wasn’t dangerous for the children, he went back to the room Midoriya and Chip were resting in. He knew it had only been a month and he should have gotten his hopes up. After all, this is a power unknown to the world.

He pushed the door open and peaked in. Umbreon looked up from his perch on the mahogany bedside table, dutifully guarding the still knocked-out boy and his Eevee.

It was something for sure. They had gotten the evolution to start but lost control of it almost instantly after. Espeon, Midoriya said they were going for. His hair and eyes turned a pastel purple and Chip was mid-evolution again. This time, Chip didn’t cut it off as they tried to hold it. It resulted in half of the room being turned upside down and another spasm for the two of them. It looked so painful.

Shouta settled on the side of the bed. His fingers itched to run through the boy’s green locks, to comfort the wounded soul. He didn’t. The way the boy reacted to it earlier said enough. Truly Shouta had only known him for a month not counting his month away, and the levels of hatred towards adults seemed only to grow while he was gone. He could not expect Midoriya and Chip to be willingly close to him just yet. Shouta doesn’t know how long it will take but he plans on building a good reputation with the two before pressing for information on their home life. He hates waiting like this when he is so sure that something is happening but he cannot force himself on them. Midoriya and Chip already have such a corrupted view of adults. Shouta and Umbreon must approach this carefully in a way they would accept. They couldn’t act all sweet and kind around him just yet, couldn’t show their care or support too much without making them more skeptical. Shouta and Umbreon couldn’t  _ be nice _ because Midoriya and Chip didn’t understand when someone was nice to them. It was like a hate crime against them or something. Sickening but true.

Shouta hates knowing that he has to leave tomorrow morning too when he just got here. He has a job still, after all. He can only hope that coming here once a month, maybe two times, will be enough and that Midoriya and Chip won’t hate him for it.

The boy groaned, rolling over, just beginning to wake up. Green eyes opened and met his. It ached Shouta’s heart when fear flashed in them. He recalls Mr. Midoriya’s black eyes, oh so similar to his own. So much hatred, anger, fear, and  _ pain _ flashed in Midoriya’s eyes all at once. He held up his hands. “Good afternoon to you too.” The sound of his voice seemed to snap the boy out of it.

Out of it… A state of paralyzed fear at simply meeting his eyes. It makes anger mimicking the boy’s own churn in him. He couldn’t wait for the day to bring Midoriya and Chip out from under Mr. Midoriya’s cruel hold.

Once a month isn’t enough though. At least, not for as well as Shouta wants it to be. It more or less keeps Midoriya placated.

Every time he leaves and comes back, Midoriya and Chip seem to only be more and more angry, which he can’t blame them for. They also seem more and more rebellious. The first time he came back, Midoriya only had one piercing. The third he had two. The fifth he had four. One in his left ear lobe, one in his right ear lobe, and three traveling up the right ear. In the fourth month, though, Chip even had a couple of hoops at the top of his left ear. Only once has he seen the boy actually in school and he has been coming back for almost a year now. Most of the time he finds Midoriya smoking, too, despite his most kind warnings.

Every time they seem darker than the last.

They are hurting, he knows it. Shouta tries to get them to speak about it, to tell him, but the boy made it into a game almost, seeing how long he could trail Shouta on. Finally, he got one, singular piece of information as to at least  _ why _ Midoriya wasn’t giving him any information when he  _ knows _ Shouta could help them out.

\-----

_ ‘You have a sister?’ _

_ Midoriya nodded.  _

_ ‘Is she okay?’ he asks hesitantly. _

_ The greenette chuckled dryly. ‘Of course.’ He paused before adding darkly. ‘As long as I’m there…’ _

\-----

Shouta counted it as a major win. Not in terms of proof to get Midoriya and Chip help, but in terms of finally making ground with the two. That month, last month, Shouta had found Midoriya at the mansion. He was unable to train. He didn’t tell Shouta why, making some sort of lazy excuse about falling from a tree, which could have been true since the boy does swing in them a lot, about why he winced from twisting his back even the slightest bit and why Chip’s back left leg was completely bandaged. So, the two just talked, or sat in silence, while their pokemon napped.

Shouta is so grateful for Umbreon. He thinks that this would have taken much longer on getting at least that much from Midoriya if it weren’t for the fact that Chip had taken a liking to Umbreon.

Speaking of training though, they had made some progress in the past year. Each month Shouta would give them something new to try.

Midoriya and Chip have gotten to the point where Chip can now fully ‘evolve’ into three separate evolutions: Flareon, Espeon, and Vaporeon, though not for long times. He can only hold it for about a minute. Midoriya on the other hand… it wasn’t going so smoothly, mostly because the drawbacks were worse for the boy. Vaporeon was the hardest. While spasms don’t occur  _ every  _ time now, they do still occur and it is mostly when they try the water type evolution. His body produces water during that time but because of the instability of the power and him not having the element to truly wield it, yet, his lungs fill with it.

He gave Hitoshi and Serena, and Midoriya as well, each CPR lessons, having met the boy’s friends at some point, for these sorts of occasions and a bit of training on how to safely handle someone having a seizure. 

It was a slow, tedious, painful process and they only had a year left before Midoriya, and Hitoshi, would be taking the UA Trainer’s Academy entrance exams.

“Stop.”

Midoriya all but collapsed into Shouta’s arms only to instantly push away and fall completely. Chip fell against Umbreon, a bit more trusting. Midoriya glared at the floor, panting heavily, hair growing back in green from red. He checked the stop watch. “Three minutes, not bad.”

Midoriya slammed his fist on the ground. “Not bad my butt! It sucks!” Chip looked down, obviously not too pleased as well. Shouta sighed and sat by them. “It’s  _ better _ than before. That is what matters.” Midoriya looked away. He was trying not to get angry at Shouta which warmed the man’s heart to see the greenette purposefully trying to not actively push him away.

Closer but not close enough. Just enough to where Midoriya accepted the hand up and did not immediately push Shouta away when he stumbled and the man caught him. Instead, he let Shouta hold him for a good five seconds before he stood on his own.

“Are you okay?” he asked when the boy finally caught his breath. 

Midoriya and Chip both froze. “O- okay?” he heard Midoriya’s voice shake. Shouta tilted his head. A dark aura filled the room. The boy and his Eevee looked up at him with smiles far too wide to be normal. Something,  _ something _ , lingered in their eyes. A crazed look Shouta had never seen before in either of them. “Of course. Why wouldn’t we be?”

Shouta… never asked that again.

____________________________

“Bye, bye!”

Serena waved goodbye to Mr. Aizawa and trotted into the mansion. She was so glad Izuku had gotten an adult he could confide in because honestly? Serena didn’t know how to handle half of the things that seemed to be wrong with her green-haired friend and his Eevee. She didn’t know what they were, just that some things were wrong with Izuku and Chip. She learned what triggers were too and that they had a lot of them even if she didn’t see them because he had gotten really good at covering them up.

“Oh, did I miss him?" Hitoshi came in. Serena nodded. “He said he had to get back early today.”

Blue and violet eyes stared as a paper airplane flew in between the two. Serena picked it up and opened it. She blushed a bit before turning around and pointing an accusing finger at the boy who stood boldly at the top of the stairs. “I am NOT wearing that! It looks like a body suit it’s so tight!” Izuku smirked, putting out his cigarette bud on the railing before pocketing it and sliding down on the railing to them.

“Oh come on, it isn’t  _ that  _ bad,” he grinned, jumping off to meet them. “You don’t want to look like the basic contestant now do you?” Serena huffed, folding her arms. “I don’t but I do try and keep my dignity intact you know, mister no show.” She brushed past him. “Speaking of which, I brought your history homework and we have a test tomorrow.”

“Thaaaankssssss.”

Serena smiled over her shoulder at them. “Speaking of which,” Hitoshi pulled out his phone and a business card, “Serena I think I have something for you. Let’s move to the meeting room?” Aka, the long table room.

Once in there, Hitoshi sat on the table while Serena and Izuku sat before him. “This,” he slid over the card, “is a business card for a dressmaker in Aquacorde Town. She’s a family friend with my mom. Your entrance exam is a few months away so you will need to begin getting your costume wardrobe soon.”

A few months away… They were all in their third year of middle school now, all fourteen years of age. She couldn’t believe it.

After she stood up for Izuku in class, things were bumpy for a little while. People started to ignore her too. Her friends no longer hung out with her and Izuku still didn’t show up to school but maybe once every two weeks. Still, she felt so relieved. She wasn’t living a two-faced lie anymore and now she, Izuku, and Hitoshi were closer than ever.

“That’s right!” Serena snatched the card from the table. “I completely forgot! Izuku!” She turned to the boy, relishing in the way he no longer flinched to her loud antics. So casually, his eyes crinkled as he smiled. “Hmm?”

And yet… Serena shivered. She knew Hitoshi, Fennekin, and Espurr did too. No reason. Just the way Izuku acts is sometimes… scary almost. She likes to read horror stories, believe it or not, and watch those crime shows about sociopaths that no one knew they were and Izuku, well, sometimes he just gives off that vibe. The way his green eyes calculate everything and yet look so innocent. The way he smirks at everyone so calmly, kindly, yet so borderline coldly. The way he acts here as compared to the way he acts around adults or the way he smashed their classmates face into the side of the school just last week.

The way he cleaned the blood stain it left so carefully and smiled at the space it once was though his eyes gave off a sense of tiredness she could not explain.

She couldn’t describe it. Izuku was just that way sometimes. 

“We should make a portfolio of the costumes you’ve designed for me,” she suggested. “Maybe put them into themes or something? For, you know, like when they have themed contests?” Izuku hummed. “We could do that. I guess I’ve drawn quite a bit over time.” Serena nodded wildly. She kicked her feet excitedly. “This is going to be great! I need to pick out my outfit for the exams,” she stated, pulling the folder of designs Izuku had made for her. It was getting pretty thick. She should really organize these in a portfolio. “It can’t be something too flashy.”

“I don’t think so,” Izuku interjected. “After all, they are only going to accept those who are willing to go all out at the start. You have to show them that you won’t settle for anything less than the best from the start. That’s why…” he rifled through the papers for a bit before drawing out one, “let’s go with this for your first piece.”

Serena looked down at it. “I dunno… Are you sure?” Izuku shrugged. “It’s up to you, really. I just thought it would look good on you but a lot of my ideas come out of the hat so there’s no telling how they will truly look on a person.” Serena looked at her green-haired friend. It’s hard to tell what makes him really happy. Sure, he may always seem confident and bold and proud but Serena and Hitoshi have seen Izuku in ways outside closed doors. They’ve witnessed him break down for reasons they don’t know, show up with a broken arm or leg randomly, and have panic attacks for the smallest things that they didn’t know would trigger one. He was a ticking bomb at times but for the most part, when he wasn’t seemingly falling apart, he would seem perfectly fine. It was almost disturbing how fast he would bounce back too as though he weren’t literally foaming at the mouth just thirty minutes prior. So it was hard to tell what was real with him.

However, it wasn’t impossible. Not for those like Serena and Hitoshi who really knew him.

Fashion. It might seem strange for a boy, especially one from Vaniville Town, but Izuku thrived when he was designing her costumes. She would look up from posing for him and see his eyes lit up with something that couldn’t be seen anywhere else. He was  _ creating _ . 

\-----

_ ‘When I’m designing… I don’t know. It’s just like I finally have control or something.’ _

\-----

It all started back when Hitoshi first introduced the boy to clothes that actually fit, Serena thinks. Ever since then, Izuku has been designing and putting together outfits not only for her hopeful future as a Contest Queen but also for her, Hitoshi, and Izuku’s everyday wear. If she came to school on one of the days he was there with something on that he thought didn’t quite fit, he would fix it, just the simple unbuttoning or rebuttoning of a single button, the change of hair, or even tilting her hat just a bit to the right. It wasn’t just that he thrived at fashion. Izuku was  _ good _ at it too.

That light… Serena wanted to protect that light that seemed to dim by the day in Izuku’s eyes. She hated how tired he always looked. How angry he always was. How  _ pained _ he always seemed. She wanted to know why and what was doing this to him but she couldn’t know. Izuku never gave that much away. So she supported his fashion and his fashion supported her and together the three made a great team.

That’s why, when she looked up at Izuku and saw the way he looked at the art he had made with such care, she knew this was the one. Her  _ designer _ had designed it specifically for her.

“I’ll do it!”

Getting her measurements was a wee bit awkward. She couldn’t go home to get her Mom to do it because this was the last day this month that Hitoshi was going to be here and she reeeaaally wanted the order in as soon as possible. So… having the boys do it was… odd. But it was fine. Izuku seemed into it, of course. He took to the WeTube tutorial of taking a girl’s body measurements like a moth to a flame.

No. Not a flame. Aside from the small flame when he lights a cigarette, Izuku is next to petrified of fire which is odd because Mr. Midoriya’s quirk is fire breathing and his sister’s, Inha’s, is fire manipulation. Still, it means all the more to her when he sits in to watch her practice a performance even though it includes Fennekin’s fire. They do it in a designated room, each of them having their own, and Izuku does still sit at the farthest he can get from it but he watches and gives his own critiques.

He made sure to get it as close as possible, first measuring his finger on an online application before using his finger to measure her. It was embarrassing but he was so focused and pleased with being able to do something more in the world of designing that Serena couldn’t bear saying no.

Even if she pouted a bit when he announced her bust size was a little smaller than she would have preferred for a girl her age. It’s not her fault that the Williams family girls don’t have big chests, okay?!

A month later, Hitoshi came back and with it came the dress. “Serena, you are going to have a spasm at this rate,” Izuku sighed, laying across the long table as she nervously bounced her leg to the side. He was a bit tired today. Serena wonders if he lost a fight with a classmate because he had a black eye and couldn’t bend his back too much without wincing but she doubts it. Izuku never loses. It was probably just a close call. She was just happy that he showed up after he disappeared for three days last week. “That’s your job, Izuku,” she snipped, but settled for not bouncing her leg. “Fine,” he said, “you will make  _ me _ have a spasm.” Serena rolled her eyes. “That isn’t a trigger of yours.”

“Hey now, we don’t know that yet.”

“Well we would if someone went to the doctors.”

“Nope!”

“This is a petty conversation.” Both Serena and Izuku looked over at the door to the long room as Espurr held it open for Hitoshi. Blue and viridian eyes met before the two snickered. “Yeah, you’re right,” Izuku pushed himself up, wincing slightly. “You can stay down, Izuku,” she urged. “Nah, I want to see you rock your gown.” Serena smiled. “Speaking of which…” She flipped to Hitoshi. “Where?!”

The boy chuckled and set his bag on the table. Out of it he pulled the creation. Serena’s eyes sparkled. Before her Hitoshi held a white ball gown that stopped at her knees. It had layers of black and blue over the poof layering from bottom up white, black, light blue, then black. Around the waist was a light blue ribbon that tied in a bow in the back. The top looked almost tuxedo-like with a white middle with black buttons and two black straps, one on each side. At the top was a light blue bow to go around her neck. The sleeves were short and poofy, going just below the shoulder, each having blue ribbon around the cuffs.

Hitoshi laid it on the table before turning and pulling out the accessories: short white gloves with tiny blue bows on top and a giant light blue bow for her hair. Not only that, but there was also a mini version of the dress and boy for Fennekin!

“Now, I know that she is only a dressmaker,” Hitoshi reached into the bag once more, “but I wanted you to have the full costume so I took the liberty of going to a shoe craftsman and getting the rest of the ensemble. Free of charge,” he pulled out the boots. “Consider these a gift from me.” Serena had money from Mom to pay for the dress. Hitoshi placed the boots on the table. They were black with blue bottoms and white laces with white frills at the top and, of course, a light blue bow.

It was… “BEAUTIFUL!” Izuku and Chip did jump at that. Serena picked up the dress, hugging it to her chest and spinning around. “ThankyouthankyouTHANKYOU!” Hitoshi grinned, sitting on the table. He waved her. “Go try it on. You need to make sure it fits and get the adjustments made before your exams.”

Serena nodded and ran off to the room across the hall. Putting on the entire outfit, Fennekin too, Serena looked in the giant mirror in the room. Seeing them together like this… it felt so surreal. She was actually doing this. They were going to be Maidens! Maidens were the title before earning the title of Kalos Princess. Or Gentlemen for boys but there weren’t too many males in this field.

Serena poked her head back into the meeting room. “Are you two ready?” Hitoshi nodded. Izuku’s head came up slowly, blinking a few times before nodding. He was a bit disoriented today. That’s fine she thinks. With big grins, Serena and Fennekin revealed themselves, each spinning a few times. “What do you think?”

The boys smiled. “You look great.”

It was real. This was real. Serena, with this outfit made through a joint effort of her and her best friends, was going to take and pass her entrance exam in two months time. She couldn’t wait!

____________________________

“What do you mean you aren’t coming back?” Izuku hissed.

Aizawa held up his hands. “Hold up, don’t get the wrong idea.” Kind of hard right now. Izuku crossed his arms, waiting. The man sighed. “I am a proctor for the regular exams and I don’t want there to be any speculation about me maybe giving you extra points for you to pass.” Izuku narrowed his eyes. “I’m taking the recommended exams. Why does it matter then?”

“Midoriya,” Aizawa settled on the fence next to him, “I know you don’t like this but it is necessary. I will come back after the exams and you will see me every day at school aside from the weekends if you pass.” Izuku rolled his eyes. “Oh, and that makes it better. It’s not like I  _ want _ to see you,” he huffed.

A lie. Izuku liked Aizawa hanging around, even if it were only once or twice a month. He was Izuku’s minuscule hope for a future outside of the place he called ‘home’. Of course, he would never tell the man that. Aizawa had already done so much for him. Now Izuku and Chip could hold a form for ten minutes and the two had been even training with their powers and Chip’s ever-changing moveset within their allotted time. If it weren’t for Aizawa he would have never gotten this far. He shouldn’t be greedy.

He just… He didn’t want him to  _ go _ .

A hand rested on his shoulder and Izuku didn’t move. He let this small contact hold. It felt real. He didn’t want it to leave. “Will you be… alright?” Aizawa asked. Izuku sucked in a deep breath before looking up with a smirk, flashing his false confidence. “Ha! Who do you think you are talking to? I’m not some baby. I’m fourteen, you know.” “You look twelve.”

Izuku hopped off the fence, immediately missing the hand on his shoulder. “Whatever, Hobo.”

He accompanied the man to the bus stop, eyes down. “Midoriya,” Aizawa crouched before him and held out a piece of paper. “This is my number, you can call me whenever.” Izuku raised an eyebrow. “I don’t have a phone.” Aizawa shook his head. “No, but I am sure Hope would let you use hers. I know I’ve given you it before but I mean it. I want you to know that I am not leaving you.” Izuku fake gagged. “What is this, a soap opera?” He glanced down at the paper before snatching it from Aizawa’s hand. “Don’t expect much, Hobo.”

Aizawa smiled. He had a weird smile. It was creepy as if he didn’t know how to smile, or even fake one like Izuku. It was weird but… it was real. It was caring. It wasn’t one of pity from his friends or a victorious grin from Mr. Midoriya as he kicked Izuku in the stomach, the boy trapped between the wall and the man.

\-----

_ ‘Come on, Mikumo! Get up, Mikumo! What, can’t you move? Does it hurt? Move, Mikumo! Don’t you want to?!’ _

\-----

His fists shake by his sides. Mocking him while he is down, making him feel weak because he knows Izuku can’t fight back or else Inha and Mrs. Midoriya will get hurt. He hates it!

Aizawa… isn’t like that. At least, not as far as he knows. Whenever they train he makes sure to make time for breaks. If Izuku passes out or has a spasm, he doesn’t force him to stand up again when he can’t. 

“I expect as much as you will give me,” was all the Hobo replied. He likes that. Sure, Aizawa will press for information every once and Izuku will joke with him about it, never truly giving away information because that could be dangerous, but if the man notices Izuku is starting to feel cornered or starts to snap back in a more angry than fun way then he typically backs off for the time being. He doesn’t expect Izuku to give out personal information nor will he force it out of him. It’s nice…

Izuku almost found him trusting him. He doesn’t but it was close. 

The bus pulled up and Aizawa and Umbreon boarded it. He’s leaving… He’s not coming back. Sure, maybe it would be for only a few months but he was still leaving. What if he never came back? It wouldn’t matter. Izuku has lived life without trusting adults thus long. He can do so again. Does he want to? That doesn’t matter either. What he wants doesn’t matter in these cases. But the bus is pulling away… 

* **drip** * * **drip** *

Izuku looked down at his hands. “H- huh?” He rubs at his eyes. They were leaking. “Dang it, s- stop it!” Chip rubbed against his leg. “It’s okay,” he huffed. “I don’t need him anyway.” He spun around and stormed off back into town.

“Izuku!” He jumped, turning to the Pokemon Center they were just passing. Nurse Hope came running out with her phone. “You’ve got a call!”  _ Huh? _ Izuku walked up to her and took the phone carefully. He was always gentle with Nurse Hope. She… she was also an adult he  _ supposes _ that he likes. Or, at least, didn’t hate. “Thank you,” he whispered, pressing the phone to his ear. “Hello?”

“ **Hey, kid.** ” His heart leapt.  _ Aizawa _ . “Were those tears I saw you wiping away, hmm?” He was joking. Izuku knows he was just joking. And yet… And yet…

* **sniff** * * **sniff** *

He crouched to the ground, clutching his shirt over his chest, head low as tears slowly fell to the ground. _Why?_ “Hey, kid,” Aizawa’s voice was much softer. _Why does he care so much?_ “It will be… It will be _okay_.” His pounding heart stilled in his chest. “I promise that I will come back. It will only be a few months.” Nurse Hope’s hands found his shoulders. She carefully guided him inside the center and to the trainer’s lodging, gratefully leaving him and Chip in there to curl on the bed. “Do you want me to stay on the line?” He couldn’t get out words but his poorly stifled sniffles were enough of an answer. He put the phone on speaker for Chip.

And Aizawa talked. He didn’t say too much being the introverted man he is, but it was enough. Mostly about random pokemon, things he knew Izuku enjoyed, anything to be saying something. It wasn’t much but to Izuku and Chip?

It meant the world.

____________________________

“Oh, and one of my students caught a-”

“Aizawa,” Hope’s voice cut in over the silent phone, startling Shouta. “Hope,” he greeted. “He fell asleep,” she informed him. After a beat, her own watery voice spoke again. “Thank you, Aizawa, for not giving up on Izuku. He… he really needs someone like you in his life I think. I’m not asking you to act as a father figure or anything, just thank you for sticking around.”

Shouta’s usually cold heart felt warm at her words. “It’s no problem, Hope. Thank you for letting him keep the phone for the duration of this call. Have a good day.” She hummed. “You too.” And the line went dead. Umbreon shut off his phone from beside him. Shouta looked out of the window of the bus as it was just approaching the city limits of Lumiose City.

\-----

_ ‘I’m not asking you to act as a father figure or anything-’ _

\-----

He has thought of having a family before, settling down and getting married even. He casted off the thought long ago. It was irrational to have a family as a hero. He cared for each of his students and raised them in the way of the hero for a few years before they went on. He had Hizashi and Nemuri and that was enough. After he forgot about the idea of starting a family he never thought about it again.

Until now.

But even then he couldn’t pursue that sort of familial bond with Midoriya. Not because the boy’s own mistrust of him, because that was certainly a part of it, but more because he  _ doesn’t have proof _ . Two years he has been training the greenette and  _ nothing _ . The boy was either a vault tighter than Taurus Prison or there was truly nothing wrong and that, Shouta hats to admit it, scared him. Because what if there truly was nothing wrong at the boy’s home? What if he did try and pursue a familial bond with Midoriya and Chip only to find that they didn’t want it because their home life was actually perfect? It would make things awkward for them and for the family.

Now, Shouta is still 99.999999999% sure that there is something wrong and the boy is being abused. There are  _ signs _ just not  _ evidence _ . Shouta glances down at the phone. Midoriya’s choked sobs that crackled through the phone still rang in his ears.

_ A family, huh? Right now? At this point? Irrational. _

But the human heart always reaches for things it cannot rationally have… 

____________________________

Izuku never noticed just how integral Aizawa’s presence had become in his life. Even if it were only once or twice a month they saw each other, Izuku  _ looked forward _ to his presence. It was like a relief from the month of turmoil wondering what he did wrong this time to make the man leave. The month of questioning if the next time they met his warm eyes would turn cold like Mr. Midoriya’s did. It  _ hurt _ , the man being gone and Izuku didn’t understand why. It wasn’t like Aizawa was his father or anything. A friend? Could he call him that? He was a teacher. That is all he was.

And as far as Izuku was concerned, teachers were the only second to Mr. and Mrs. Midoriya on the ranks of being liars. Fakes. He hated them but dealt with them enough to stay out of their way enough for them to not tell Mr. Midoriya that he was skipping as much as he was. Of course, Mr. Midoriya knew Izuku still skipped school, just not as often as he did.

But.. Aizawa wasn’t like the other teachers. Izuku just couldn’t place his finger on it but it didn’t matter. It wasn’t like he  _ cared _ . Right?

The three months leading up to the entrance ceremony were painful.

\-----

_ ‘You won’t pass like that!’ * _ **_BAM_ ** _ * Izuku let out a low groan as he slid down the wall, vision spinning with the force of the hit and the way his head hit the wall. He didn’t bother getting up. Not until Mr. Midoriya approached, flames licking at his lips. _

_ He scrambled to his feet but stumbled, his world tilting.  _ ‘Too slow. _ ’ Flames exploded from the adult’s mouth. Screams exploded from the teen’s.  _

\-----

It was torture. But then again, since when was it not. Mr. Midoriya found joy in the way his blood splattered the walls of the basement and his cries of pain sounded like a beautiful symphony to the cruel man’s demented ears. The door would close and Izuku would lay like a dead body on the cold ground for hours, staring at the walls painted with the reassurances he put up. “OKAY”’s covered the gray walls, art made with his blood, a new one added each session. 

He  _ needed _ it to be okay.

He could feel himself crumbling but no, he couldn’t. He wouldn’t, not so long as he forced himself together. 

Summer Break hit and he was trapped in the basement for a large portion of it. The only time he was allowed out was maybe once or twice a week so as not to look suspicious that Izuku just disappeared. Hitoshi and Serena questioned him about his lack of attendance at the mansion but he couldn’t give any reasons and they soon stopped. They couldn’t bring themselves to push harder when the times he was there Izuku was so quiet, so tired, in so much pain. He smiled with his usual confidence and promised everything was okay. Because it  _ is _ . It is perfectly okay. Even if they didn’t believe him he would continue to tell them that until they believed it. They _had_ to believe it. It  _ had to be okay. _

He would call Aizawa as often as he could but it wasn’t often and he would find himself not really speaking that much like the first time. It wasn’t  _ enough _ . But it would be. He would make sure of it even if it killed him.

In a blur of flames, screams, and pain, the UA Trainer’s Academy entrance exams were upon them.

“Izuku!”

The greenette’s head snapped up at the sound of his friend running up to the subway platform in Aquacorde Town. He had gotten there a bit earlier because the bus from Vaniville Town arrived before their train to Lumiose City. He lifted a hand. “Hey, Hitoshi.” It was only the two boys as their pokemon weren’t allowed on the subway. “You look good today.” Izuku hummed.

Mr. Midoriya was… nicer last night. And for the past week. Not exactly ‘nicer’ but definitely less violent. Izuku needed to be in tip-top form after all. Couldn’t have him sporting a busted lip, bruised ribs, or with another concussion now could we? It made him angry just thinking about it.

“Are you ready for today?” Hitoshi asked. Izuku smirked. “Of course I am. What about you? Sure you aren’t gonna wimp out on us?” The purple-haired boy rolled his eyes. “It’s not me who has to worry. You are the one taking the recommendation exams.” They stood when the subway came. “I heard they are killer.” Izuku shrugged. “Nothing me and Chip can’t handle.”

Boarding the subway, Izuku noticed Bakugou taking a seat on the opposite side of the cart. They glared at each other for a second before turning away.  _ What a load. _ Thus started their two hour ride to Lumiose City.

Izuku yawned, having been up since four just so he could make it. It was quite the ways from Vaniville Town. 

Truthfully, he was nervous. So many things could go wrong. He and Chip could fail their evolution or end up having a spasm. He could fail miserably and then have to return to the Midoriya’s and wait for his falling to come when they receive the letter saying that he failed. When they received that letter… Izuku was pretty sure he might literally die, murdered at the hands of Mr. Midoriya. He was wondering when the man would do it. He was just waiting for Izuku to fail. But Izuku  _ couldn’t  _ fail because if he did, not only would he be murdered, Mrs. Midoriya and Inha would suffer for it too. Mr. Midoriya would probably start training the six year old girl for glory as a hero and while it might not be as brutal as what he does to Izuku and Chip, no child should have to suffer that. Izuku has to protect them.

But aside from his inevitable death and aside from Inha and Mrs. Midoriya’s safety… If Izuku failed then what would Aizawa do? He’d probably finally show his true colors. All adults do when something doesn’t go their way. Aizawa was training him for today. If Izuku didn’t pass then he would be cast aside by the raven-haired man. If he were to be cast aside by Aizawa…

Well, Izuku might kill himself before Mr. Midoriya gets a chance to.

No, no, _no_. Aizawa does not mean  _ that  _ much to him. 

____________________________

Hitoshi glanced down at his shoulder where Izuku had fallen asleep. Worry glistened in his violet eyes. It wasn’t anything new to worry about the greenette. He worried about him often. Too many times would Izuku show up to the mansion with a fresh bruise, something bandaged, or just not show up at all. Chip too. He knew something had to be happening but the two were so defensive about it that he couldn’t get a word in edgewise. If they tried then Izuku would disappear for a couple of days. It was as though they were afraid of something.

Over the years of knowing Izuku and Chip, Hitoshi has noticed a steady decline. He knows Serena has too. In fact, they’ve talked about it on the days they didn’t show up.

They’ve become more and more angry as time goes on. Never towards them directly, but every once in a while it seems that way even though they know Izuku and Chip don’t mean it to. Their appearance has gotten more thug-like too but not in a bad way but that was mostly because Izuku cared about his appearance too much to actually look like a thug. It was more the small things. The piercings, the hair, the chains. Sure, the way he spruced himself up made it look really cool and he is sure girls would be swooning over the greenette if he actually looked his age but Hitoshi still doesn’t consider it necessarily healthy. He feels a bit guilty for letting it happen too. After all, he was Izuku’s main source of clothing. But the way Izuku’s and Chip’s eyes lit up when they donned their new clothes made him want to support it.

He couldn’t bring himself to stop.

When they finally arrived, Hitoshi shook the boy away. His heart hurt with the way Izuku jumped, head whirling around to meet him, eyes wide in fear. It happened often. Wherever he would wake up from passing out while training, most of the time it was okay but sometimes this sort of, Hitoshi couldn’t describe it. There was  _ nothing _ wrong and yet Izuku just looked so… so petrified! As if they would hurt him! They had to eventually stop being in the room when he woke up. 

Hitoshi stood. It’s better not to acknowledge it. Izuku hates it being acknowledged. “Let’s go.”

Even though they tried to get off at the nearest station, UA Trainer’s Academy is still a nice walk from the city. They let out their pokemon as they were allowed in the city. UA Trainer’s Academy… is huge!

When they walk in, it’s like nothing they had ever seen before. Well, at least not Izuku. He could see the way Izuku’s and Chip’s eyes glistened, shining in awe at the sheer difference of the city as compared to their small town of Vaniville. They were like little kids in a candy shop.

“Hitoshi! The buildings are so tall!”

“Hitoshi! Did you see that? It’s a whole mall!”

“Hitoshi! There are so many restaurants!”

It was endearing. They boldly strolled through the UA gates and stopped before just inside the school. “My exam is this way,” he pointed over his shoulder. Izuku nodded. He held out a fist. “Don’t fail.” Hitoshi smirked and bumped his own against his friend’s. “Same to you.” As they split ways, Hitoshi heard it, so dark, so menacing, and yet, so paranoid:

“Oh, don’t you worry.  _ I won’t _ .”


	9. Recommendation Exams

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I think the title is self-explanatory.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone doing?

“Ah… come on…”

Izuku looked up at the sign high above his head, hanging off the wall and told the reader what door leads to what. The only thing is, you have to be able to read and, well, Izuku’s eyesight _sucked_. Over the years of being in the basement, it had been slowly dwindling. Now he couldn’t even see the words on the sign, the white letters blending in with the light blue background. A boy with half white, half red hair passed him. Izuku reached out and tapped the kid on the shoulder. “Hey, can you help me for a second?”

He turned around. Izuku was close enough he could just make out his blurry face. He looked displeased. “ _What do you want?_ ” Oooooh he sounded just about as cold Izuku did to any and every adult. Izuku glared right back at him. “Oh, my apologies. I didn’t realize you were such a big shot that you can’t help a fellow exam taker without putting them in their place.” The boy looked stunned at him snipping like this. Izuku scoffed. “What, you think you are the only one with an attitude here? Get off your high rocker?”

“High… rocker?” peppermint asked. “Do you not… know who I am?”

Izuku blanched. “Oh, my apologies, your majesty.” He rolled his eyes. “No. I don’t. What’re ya, some hero’s brat?” Peppermint snorted. “You aren’t like the others.” Izuku hummed. “Good. I don’t plan on it. So are you gonna to help me or not? Otherwise we are wastin’ time.” Peppermint nodded. “I’ll help. What do you need?”

Izuku grinned. “See, there ya go!” He pointed to the sign. “I can’t see all that well, ya know, so I’mma bit lost. Lookin’ for the recommendation exams.” Peppermint blinked. “You? No offense but-” “I know, I know!” Izuku groaned. “I look twelve. That doesn’t matter! Just, can you help me or nah?” Peppermint smirked. “I’m taking them too. Follow me.”

Izuku found he doesn’t mind Peppermint. He thinks the boy doesn’t hate him either. Judging on the way he reacted to Izuku not reacting to his presence, the boy is surrounded by fakes too. Both of them hate it and both of them don’t care for conversing with those fake. Peppermint’s presence was refreshing. He was like the teen version of Aizawa. Maybe. He just met the kid after all. He didn’t even know his real name.

“Here we are,” Peppermint stopped outside of a pair of double doors. Izuku looked up. Wow… the sign looks… EXACTLY THE SAME. Dang! He would not have found this on his own. Izuku rubbed his eyes as though that would make it somehow clearer. “You should really get your eyes checked,” Peppermint stated as they walked in. It was a simple conference room. A few of the examinees had already gathered. Izuku huffed. “So I’ve been told. Thanks for helping me.” he pat Peppermint on the back and walked in, settling in one of the chairs in the middle of a gap of people so he wouldn’t necessarily have to sit by anyone. Chip jumped up and settled in his lap. Peppermint… sat next to him. Izuku swallowed a sigh. He was trying to do better in his sarcasm and dislike of people, believe it or not. Specifically kids and teens and the like. Not adults. He would forever hate adults and make sure they all knew that. That being said, he was trying to do better and be “more respectful” so Izuku really didn’t want to bite Peppermint’s head off. It didn’t make it any easier not to when the boy sat next to him.

Deciding to ignore that the boy was, Izuku took stock of everyone in the room.

There weren’t as many as he expected though he does suppose this is the recommendation exams, not the normal ones that, according to the internet, have thousands upon thousands of examinees.

The most notable are the green haired boy, the girl with the big black ponytail, and the tall boy with a buzzcut that laughed loudly in the corner of the room. Izuku narrowed his eyes. _Confident much? Bet he doesn’t have jack to prove._ The sudden urge to beat the boy up. He sighed and leaned back, hands behind his head. “Man, I need a smoke,” he made the off-handed comment. Peppermint raised an eyebrow. _Ah, right, that’s illegal._ Chip looked up at him unimpressed. _What? It’s not my fault you refuse to smoke._ Because, yes, Izuku has offered a cigarette to Chip on multiple occasions.

The door opened. Izuku immediately tensed on habit, unnoticeable to those who weren’t used to it. Only, someone was. Peppermint also tensed. They met eyes. _Huh._

A man Izuku vaguely recognized as Cementoss walked in and rounded to the front of the room with a Conkeldurr. “Greetings,” his voice was a lot softer than Izuku had imagined. “I am Cementoss and I will be your proctor for the written portion of the recommendation exams. I would like to say that just because many of you have been recommended by high ranking heroes and businessmen does not make you better than the rest, not even than those in the normal exams. Please do not overestimate your abilities. That is the biggest downfall of any hero. That being said, let us begin. Those of you close by other exam takers, please spread out.” Izuku and Peppermint separated a few seats apart. “Thank you. Also, you and your pokemon may work together on this but please refrain from using your pokemon, their moves, or your quirks for cheating off of your fellow examinees.”

Looking around, many pokemon were released from their pokeballs. Izuku and Chip suddenly felt very small and very much from the country and very much not born in a high class family of heroes as almost everyone had their pokemon in either their second, and some third, evolutionary stages and some even already had more than one pokemon. Take Peppermint, for example. He let out two pokemon, two large nine-tailed foxes. One was golden which he recognized as Ninetails, the fire type from the Kanto region evolved from Vulpix. The other one was white and and looked suspiciously like the Ninetails (Alola). Was it a different breed? Was it like the Furfrou that you could take to stylists to get its fur groomed? But all white? That was a bit overkill. Plus, they did have some other differences. Izuku wanted to know _more_. They sat dutifully on either side of their trainer.

“Great.” Cementoss passed a stack of papers to his Conkeldurr. “Conkeldurr will be passing around your written exam. As soon as you receive it, you may begin.”

Izuku… regrets skipping school now. He knew maybe, half of the stuff here? And maybe he could also blame it on the low quality education of Vaniville Town as compared to the institutions and cram schools the other test takers here most likely attended but still, the test was _hard_. Chip would occasionally point something out, making small sounds and whimpers when he got something wrong but aside from that, the two were completely lost. When the five minute warning was called, they were just writing down whatever they thought could possibly be even remotely relevant and filling in random bubbles for their answers.

“And-” Izuku filled in the last bubble “-stop.”

He sighed, hand twitching as he dropped the pencil. Not a spasm. Just it hurt like crazy from writing so much. Cronkeldurr came around and took their papers. “Now, there are a few buses waiting to take you all to the physical exam location just behind the school,” Cementoss informed. “If you are not yet in your workout clothing, you may take a right once leaving this room and find both the male and female dressing rooms on either side of the hallway a bit further down.” Izuku was glad he thought beforehand to be dressed in his workout clothes, just a simple pair of old black sweats and a gray t-shirt. Still, he will admit he felt out of place as everyone else was in their respective school’s uniform. He stood and left, not really caring whether or not that was a proper dismissal.

Outside the main building, about to walk off the path to the back, he found Bakugou waiting as the normal exams had just let out and the hoard of students were being taken to and from physical exam sites.

“Deku,” the blonde huffed, “I heard you were takin’ the recommendation exams.” Izuku shrugged. “What’s it to you?” Red eyes narrowed. “Don’t go getting all high and mighty just because you got recognized by that sketchy-looking man. You’re lucky I ain’t put ya in your place yet.” Izuku’s eye twitched. “Oh am I now? I guess you could say then,” Izuku brushed past the blonde, purposefully bumping his shoulder roughly, “that you, too, are lucky I haven’t shown the class what a wimp you are.” He smirked over his shoulder. “Can’t even stand up to a little elementless kid.” Ignoring Bakugou’s yells of indignation, Izuku moved on and went to the back of the school and boarded the last bus, habitually taking the last seat.

Soon enough, the other exam takers began to fill the buses. Peppermint took the seat across from his. Izuku swallowed another sigh. _So I guess we are a team now?_ Izuku couldn’t help the way his right arm twitched nervously.

They had discovered that his nervous tendency of twitching slightly wasn’t all that tendency-like and more of a mini-spasm in his arm of his brain misfiring in response to his nervousness. Izuku had learned to hide it by crossing his arms loosely. 

They pulled up to the top of a cliff. Getting out, they were greeted with what looked like an obstacle course. There was a big pond, a rock climbing cliff, a stretch of land that probably had traps, and more. Cementoss and Cronkeldurr walked to the front, “This,” he gestured to the expansive course, “is the first part of your physical exam. There are forty of you. You will be split into groups of five. Each group will start at the finish line and race to complete the course. Whoever takes first place shall move on to the second part which is a tournament style battle between you, your pokemon, your opponent, and their pokemon. The final four will automatically be entered into UA’s Trainer’s Course but will still compete to see who ranks first and second to decide which of the two classes you will be placed in. Another thing, you must pass the finish line with your pokemon in order to count this as a win.”

Izuku nodded. Seems simple enough. So basically, he just had to be better than all of these well-trained practically already mini-heroes. GrEaT.

He and Peppermint were in different groups. Izuku was just fine with that. He didn’t need to be facing someone with two fully-evolved pokemon right now. He was in the second group. They would be watching the other groups go, both a shame and a blessing. He would have liked to hide their little secret for the battles but he also would have the advantage of seeing the course one time through.

Peppermint was in the first group. Izuku watched closely. He had a feeling that the boy was stronger than he let on. The first five lined up at the edge of the cliff. Cementoss raised a smoke gun. “On your marks, get set-” * **BANG** * “-go!”

Four of the contestants jumped down, skidding on the slopped cliff to get to the ground level. Peppermint… made a whole, freaking path of just ice and was basically skating across the sky with his pokemon following behind him on the path. _That is totally unfair!_ Safe to say- “First Place: Todoroki Shoto!”

_Ah, so his name is Todoroki._

Once the dual-colored boy’s name was announced, the other runners stopped on whatever obstacle they were on, distraught. “Those of you who did not pass you may stay and watch the rest of the exams or board the bus and wait there.” _Ouch_. It really is that easy. One second you could be in the running and the next you could be out on your butt.

“Next examinees please line up.” Izuku looked down at Chip. “Let’s do this.” “Vee!” As they stepped up to the metaphorical plate, Izuku could practically feel the pity and egos of those racing against him and Chip.

_Nice. I’m up against that shortie._

_He’s a twig! No way I’ll loose to him._

_That Eevee only has three legs? Oh yeah, I’ve got this in the bag._

They were underestimating them, exactly as Cementoss told them _not_ to do. Izuku hated it. What a bunch of stuck up, city losers. Izuku raised his hand. “Cementoss, sir,” he hated having to use formalities for the man, “are we allowed to release an attack on our fellow racers?” Everyone looked at him in shock. The man simply nodded. “As long as you stay within bounds and do not permanently wound someone, that is fine.” Izuku grinned. “ _Great_.” He felt the shivers that went up everyone’s spines. 

“On your marks,” Izuku slid a foot behind him, “get set,” he licked his lips, * **BANG** * “go!”

Izuku immediately lept of the cliff, Chip close behind, their reflexes trained over the years. As he skidded down the rocky cliff, Chip rode his shoulder. They landed safely on the ground. Izuku looked over his shoulder, clicking his tongue at the close proximity of the other examinees. “Chip, sand attack,” he ordered. No sooner did Chip jump off his shoulder and spin up a whirlwind of sand. Izuku kept running, ignoring the yelps of shock from those behind him as the other examinees were blinded. Chip caught up with him soon after.

Sand attack didn’t do much though. They were still a leg down and short and these kids were trained and properly proportioned. They were soon hot on their tails. Up ahead was the large lake.It would take longer to go around if one was quick at swimming, and, well-

“Chip! Vaporeon!” “Eevee!”

\- they had trained for this. 

____________________________

Nedzu blinked as the green-haired boy’s call filtered through the mics as he was viewing the recommendation exam in his office. This was supposedly Aizawa’s recommended student and believe him when he says that he was surprised that the man recommended someone at all. His ears twitched at the boy’s voice. You wouldn’t know it, but he was a mix between a Sandshrew and a Cinccino created in a testing lab and the only pokemon to have a quirk so far outside of his movesets.

In a flash of light, the Eevee evolved into Vaporeon and the boy’s green locks turned a deep blue. Nedzu blanched. Evolution is not vocal recognition triggered. One can’t simply say “Evolve” and then their pokemon evolves. So what the hell was that? Not only that, the boy changed with the pokemon. Blue scales seemed to creep up his face and arms as the two leapt into the lake.

Nedzu is… intrigued.

____________________________

Three shifts. Izuku and Chip can shift to and from evolutions three times within fifteen minutes without having a spasm. Four at risk. Five with certainty. They needed to get through this with only two to be safe for the battle trials.

Izuku and the now-Vaporeon zipped through the water at barreling speeds. Just when they thought they were reaching the end of the lake, someone had to step in. The water shifted and began to spin in a vortex, taking the two with it. _Oh,_ he thinks _, so someone actually took my question to heart. That’s fine._ They redirected themselves up and burst from the water a bit in the air. Izuku pointed down.

“Muddy water!” he commanded. Chip let out a stream of thick, goopy water that mixed in with the water below at a much faster rate with the vortex mixing it. The girl who supposedly created the vortex ran along the side, cursing when her control of it slowed. Someone within the water got stuck. Izuku grinned and the two landed on the other side of the lake, running head-and-head with the vortex girl. They were coming up on the climbing cliff. Izuku ran low, scooping up Chip. He stops and turns backward. “Water gun at the ground.” Doing as told, the two went flying past Vortex girl. Izuku spun in the air just before they hit the wall. He reached for the nearest ledge and grabbed at it, fingers painfully sliding down a bit. He looked up. “Let’s go!”

Izuku began to scale the wall but his fingers were slipping, slippery from his transformation. “Chip, Eevee!”

____________________________

Nedzu leaned in. “Interesting…”

The boy returned to normal and the Vaporeon de-evolved back into an Eevee, a feat that should not be biologically or even scientifically possible. Suddenly, it didn’t matter if the boy failed or not. Nedzu’s High Spec’s quirk was crying out for information. He _needed_ this boy and his Eevee in his school.

____________________________

Shoto stared in shock. His first impression of the greenette was, well, he expected the same treatment as everyone else, only fawning over his father, Endeavor, and not really caring about Shoto at all.

But no. The short boy was brash, rude, and didn’t seem to give two cares in the world about who Shoto may or may not be related to. That being said, he still didn’t think much of the boy powerwise. He was short, thin, and his Eevee hobbled alongside him on three legs. They truly weren’t anything Shoto would consider _special_.

That is, until the greenette commanded the Eevee’s evolutionary process as though he were constructing an orchestra. He knew everyone else up top was amazed as well. And terrified. That isn’t… that isn’t how evolution works. But it was happening right before their eyes. Short, brash, rude, thin, three-legged, Shoto and everyone watching had only one thought:

_Who is this kid and his Eevee and where did they come from?_

____________________________

Izuku flet the wall spin from beneath him just as he and Chip flung themselves over. Looking down, a vortex had started in the middle of the wall, spinning it in strange ways. _Oh, so it isn’t just water. What an interesting quirk_ . He couldn’t dwell on it though. Before him stood a large gaping hole with pillars of stone scattered throughout. _Think, think! AH!_ “Chip, quick attack to each then Leafeon. Go!”

In a flash, Chip used the added speed from quick attack to jump to each pillar, skidding to a stop at the end of the chasm. Izuku grunted as leaves grew from his hands, starting from the back of his hand up to his elbows.

The more they trained this power, the more Izuku’s body changed with it each time Chip evolved. When Chip evolved into a Leafeon like now, Izuku’s already green hair and eyes didn’t really change but the leaves were a new thing as of two months ago. That and, he found he had a weak quirk with each change. It was painful to switch so rapidly but necessary. Izuku threw out his hands, two vines shooting forth from the leaves. Chip shot out his own vines using Vine Whip. Chip’s moveset also varied with each evolution. He was dragged forward as they retracted their vines. Izuku screeched as he plummeted down into the cavern. He stuck his feet out and they landed against the end. Looking up from the dark, he could see Chip at the top, looking over, their vines still attached. Together, they hauled him up and over to the other side of the ledge.

“Let’s go.” They didn’t have time to waste. He and Chip took off. The last obstacle was just a clear field they had to cross. A lie. Izuku felt a thin string pull around his ankle. He had two options as his mind ran at a hundred miles a minute. It could be one of two times that the trap would trigger:

 **One** : It would happen a few steps ahead of him, taking advantage of his momentum to trap him so he would be unable to dodge.

Or **Two** : The exam creators took into consideration the exam takers would think of option one and immediately stop in their tracks thus setting the trap right on top of the tripwire.

Either one was a possibility so Izuku took the choice of keep running. At least then he knew he could dodge as it came if his reflexes were fast enough. Option two was too easy of a one to miss, especially if it happened right below him. It would leave no room for foot work or anything.

* **BOOM** *

His own viridian and Chip’s Leafeon form brown eyes shifted to the right and widened as a plume of smoke rose from further out near the physical exam site wall and out from it burst an actual cannon ball. It was a bit further ahead but by the time his momentum carried him, it would hit them. Now, Izuku is sure it was fake, probably plush and only going so fast as to take them a bit off course for safety reasons but vortex girl was coming after him too fast for him to allow any stumbles.

\-----

_‘I- it hurts!’ Izuku cried out as his arms were bent backward behind his back. Hisashi’s foot was planted in his back, pulling the greenette’s arms back._

_‘You gotta be more flexible than that,’ the man growled, pulling hard._

_Izuku screamed. *_ **_CrAcK_ ** _*_

\-----

Izuku narrowed his eyes. _You gotta be more flexible than that…_

The greenette pushed harder, getting just into the range of the cannon ball. He reached out instead of completing the run to make it. The ball hit his arm but didn’t blow past. No, instead, Izuku took the momentum, letting it fling his arm back in an awkward angle as he wrapped around the ball, spinning with it. “Vee?!” Izuku spun and sun, feeling his ankles twist until he spun out and-

“Bingo.”

Vortex girl and him met eyes as he was completing his final spin. Izuku spun around one last time and threw all the strength he had in the arm that caught the spiraling ball, letting his arm whip back before forward again, throwing the cannon ball against its own velocity at such a rate it began to spin the other way. It shot from his hold, flying across the field. Vortex girl and her pokemon let out a shocked cry as it barreled towards them.

Not waiting to see the outcome, Izuku finished the spin and kept running forward to the finish line with Chip, his arms a bit more sore than he would prefer.

\-----

‘ _You gotta be more flexible-’_

\-----

A few well-timed dodges and leaps and Izuku and Chip crossed the finish line, Cementoss’s voice coming over the speakers with a: “First Place: Midoriya Izuku!”

Izuku’s eye twitched at the name, something deep rolling in him. _Midoriya_ . Izuku _hated_ that name.

He didn’t let himself linger on it though as he fell to his knees, him and Chip flashing in a white glow before returning to their normal forms, heaving. His arms, firmly on the ground to support him, shook, fingers twitching. _Calm down, Izuku. You can’t have a spasm now. Breathe._ They did it with two way too rapid shifts. Izuku had to wonder if he would be okay for the battle trials. It would be cutting it close but he had the decision to either try his first fight without evolving or to attempt one more evolution. He would technically still be in his safe zone but he didn’t want to risk it.

Depending on how it went, Izuku just needed to defeat one person to secure his place in the trainer’s course so he would risk it only if necessary.

____________________________

Nedzu watched the boy and his Eevee flash back to normal.

“Midoriya Izuku, hmm?” the hybrid rapped it’s claws on the table. He needed answers. Something wasn’t right here. To be able to do that, it was a power dangerous in the wrong hands, or paws in his case. He needed this boy in his institution, if not for his own inquiries about this rare power then for the safety of the boy and his pokemon. It would not surprise Nedzu should someone try to take advantage of this power and try to take it for themselves.

Pass or fail, Midoriya Izuku would be in their school, even if they had to add a third recommendation student and knock a normal student. This was a power Nedzu needed to protect and cultivate.

____________________________

Shoto watched as Midoriya, apparently, and his Eevee stumbled up, obviously exhausted. Everyone instantly surrounded the two, asking about what they just saw. Shoto himself wanted to ask but he remembers the way Midoriya tensed when the door opened in the written exam room. They way their eyes met as if they both were thinking:

**DANGER.**

That and the boy’s attitude towards others, it is just a hunch but Shoto would say that Midoriya hasn’t had a smiley past, or at least doesn’t care too much for people. He couldn’t say anything about the boy’s attitude, not after he just glared at the tall idiot for trying to bring up Endeavor. 

“GEEZE!” the greenette’s voice yelled above the cacophony, effectively shutting everyone up. “I ain’t got time for this and neither do none of y’all!”

_Y’all? Ain’t?_ Shoto cocked his head. _Is he from the country or something? Nah, he couldn’t be if he is in the recommended exams. Only big time hero kids or the children of businessmen get recommended and they only live in the cities. He does slur his words a bit though and have an accent. Is he really…?_

Midoriya stormed through. “It ain’t that big of a deal,” he huffed, wandering over and standing beside, oh, he stood beside Shoto. That is fine, Shoto supposes. He wasn’t really supposed to make friends but the atmosphere the two gave off together was enough to ward off the other examinees. “You-”

“Don’t,” Midoriya sighed. “Just… don’t. I’m sure you can understand why?” Shoto blinked. _Ah. Yeah._ He would constantly be bombarded with people asking about Endeavor. Shoto could only imagine it being the same for someone who can command evolution like that. Shoto hummed. “Yeah.”

And that was all they said.

____________________________

In the end, the eight entering the battle royale were as such:

Todoroki Shoto

Midoriya Izuku

Yaoyorozu Momo

Ohtani Sawyer

Watanabe Aki

Yamamoto Shiro

Yoarashi Inasa

Inbel Kane

The kids that did not pass the physical exam, all 32 of them, got a ride back to the school where their rides were called prior. The ones moving on were simply walked around to the left of the obstacle course field where there was an expansive fighting ring. Izuku’s fight was the third one. Just win that fight and he’d be a shoe-in for one of the four spots in the trainer’s course. Izuke looks up at the chart Cementoss was making as they completed the races. He would be facing… Inbel Kane first. If he won that battle then it would be him versus Todoroki. Izuku cracked his knuckles. It was about time he showed them the difference between hero training where you can take breaks and abuse training, where you fight or you die.

The first two battles went by pretty quickly. Yamamoto and his Snover lost to Ohtani and his Grovyle. It was a bad matchup as ice types are weak against grass types. Yamamoto did well though. His own blizzardy quirk helped make up for some of Snover’s downfalls but he relied on it too much to keep distance and didn’t see Ohtani getting behind him. The battle between Yaoyorozu and Yoarashi wasn’t even a battle. It wasn’t really fair to Yaoyorozu, truly. Yoarashi and his Altaria commanded a huge gust of wind that simply blew the girl and her Doublade out of the ring before they could even attempt to fight back. Truly a shame but Izuku has an idea of what the loud boy can do now.

Before he knew it, it was his turn.

His fight was fast and Izuku hated it but he was forced to call upon Chip to evolve into Jolteon, their fastest evolutionary form. Inbel and his pokemon were fast, incredibly so, but the shock of seeing Izuku and Chip change like that caused them to pause and gave the two the opening they needed to not so nicely fry their opponents.

Izuku collapsed to the ground when his win was called. He panted heavily. _That’s three. I can’t risk more._ His right arm twitched at his side along with his right eye. Trying anymore at this point wouldn’t be smart. Normally, it would be somewhat safe to try but he had already used two evolutions outside of their stability zone. The only ones they were stable with were Vaporeon, Flareon, and Espeon and even those took a lot of concentration to hold.

“Midoriya, are you alright?” Cementoss called from the side of the ring. Izuku looked up to the sky, taking a deep breath before standing. He wobbled a bit when his leg suddenly jerked but held his ground. “I’m okay!” he called back. “Let’s go, Chip.” They two ran out of the ring to the sidelines just as Todoroki and his opponent, Watanabe, were coming on. He had this fight and then the fight between Ohtani and Yoarashi to calm himself and focus on not falling apart.

At least he made it to the second round. He passed the physical exam! Now if he had enough luck to put on his written exam…

Todoroki won his fight with a whole, freaking GLACIER of ice. His pokemon didn’t even seem to do anything! Not for this, and not for the obstacle course. Hmm. That’s not completely true. The white Ninetails seemed to be an ice type as it let loose on Ice Beam that contributed to the glacier. Poor Watanabe. At least the melting of the ice gave Izuku more time to rest. Speaking of which, Todoroki seemed to be able to use fire too. He and the golden Ninetails used their combined powers to melt the mess he made.

Izuku had to look down. He couldn’t… He couldn’t look at the fire. His whole body seemed to shake when he did, anything bigger than the flame from his lighter sparking fear in him and, gosh, he really needed a smoke right now.

Ohtani hung in there a bit longer than Yamamoto did against Yoarashi. They both had to use vines to keep themselves in the ring and not fly out but during that time, while Yoarashi kept up the windy pressure, Altaria let loose a dragon’s breath move and effectively put the two out of commission. 

Which meant: “Up next, Midoriya and Todoroki.”

____________________________

Shoto let out a breath of cold air as he stood on his side of the ring, facing off against Midoriya.

To be honest, he both did and didn’t think this was a fair fight. The boy and his Eevee could apparently shift into any evolution at will. It was a dangerous, impossible power so Shoto hoped to end this quickly. However, Midoriya and Eevee weren’t looking so well. For one, Midoriya kept twitching. His right arm and eye were the worst of it but his head would jolt to the side every once in a while. That and he was extraordinarily pale. Eevee looked to be in pain and he was visibly shaking even from this distance. Shoto didn’t feel too keen on battling someone who wasn’t at their top form. He needed to prove he was better than Endeavor without his flames. It wouldn’t matter much if who he was fighting wasn’t in at their peak strength but, alas, he had to fight. It wasn’t like he could just drop out of the exams. He’d just put the two out of their misery and end this quickly.

Cementoss raised his hand. “Battle Start!” he brought it down.

Immediately, Shoto sent a wave of ice from his right side, not as big as the initial one in his previous fight, that was just to ensure that he got a spot no matter what, plus, his body was nearing frostbite temperatures. He and his Ninetails’ watched tensely, waiting for the call of Midoriya and Eevee being unable to fight from Cementoss as the two were encased in ice. Cementoss raised his hand, mouth opening, only to stop when steam began to rise from the middle of the ice. Shoto paled. “Snow, again!” Snow, his Alolan ice-type Ninetails. They both sent out another wave, covering the melting ice. But the steam kept rising and soon there was a glow in the middle of the ice. Shoto took a step back as it began moving towards him and his pokemon.

Midoriya… was melting a path through the ice. A tunnel. He couldn’t reach the inside to stop it either. Suddenly the glow’s speed towards him sped up and the amount of steam was almost blinding. Midoriya was sprinting towards him! Shoto was running backwards, building the case of ice to follow him as he ran but Midoriya was beating his speed and Shoto’s body was freezing over with ice. His fire Ninetails, Flare, his fire-type Ninetails was heating him up but not fast enough. Soon, the ice was too thin and, in a burst of light and flames, Midoriya and a- FLAREON?! The two beings burst forth from the ice in a fiery blaze.

A hand reached out for him.

\-----

_Endeavor’s hand came to grab his face. Pain erupted as fire spread over his body._

\-----

“Nine!” Snow let out an ice beam which immediately evaporated into steam but it gave them the break they needed to get far enough away. Midoriya, hair now red and flaming with blood red eyes stormed towards them and Shoto was _terrified._

The boy, in all his burning glory, was twitching so violently Shoto thought he’d have a seizure at this rate. The image before him was terrifying to look at. It was like one of those demon-possessions you only see in horror movies. Not that Shoto would know as he wasn’t allowed to watch those sorts of pleasures.

“FLaME ThroWer.” Midoriya’s voice sounded so pained it almost hurt. Flareon opened its mouth and let out a wave of flames. At the same time, Midoriya raised his left hand and let out his own wave. Shoto grit his teeth, throwing forth his hand. “Flare, flame wheel!” Flare ran up in a rolling ball of fire to meet it but-

The flames of his opponents fell short. Shoto’s eyes widened as a strangled yell from Midoriya and Flareon echoed through the air to him. “Flare, wait!” the bi-colored boy cried out as the greenette fell to his knees, gripping his chest. His flames were flickering. But Shoto’s cry came too late as Flare barreled into them. At that moment, however, Midoriya’s body jerked to the side and he fell over, Flare flying past him. The Flareon fell to the ground, fur flashing orange then brown then back to orange.

Cementoss held his hand up. “Stop the fight!! Something’s wrong!”

“No…” Midoriya growled. He reached forward, clawing at the ground. “I… can…”

It was a scene from his own memories almost. The _need_ to prove himself. To do better. To keep fighting. Because if he didn’t then-

Shoto suddenly realized why he and Midoriya seemed so similar. Why the greenette tensed alongside him in the written exam room. Why he also was so guarded. And probably, why he didn’t recognize Shoto as Endeavor’s son. He probably didn’t have access to information or that type of stuff because in their predicament, pleasures such as the internet were scarce. Their predicament… Midoriya is a victim of abuse as well… 

Midoriya’s hand jerked back, hitting himself in the chest. Cementoss was running across the field with incredible speed, yelling something in his radio about paramedics. Shoto and the other fighters could only watch as the boy and his Eevee had, what Shoto only thought of as an exaggeration previously, a seizure. Shoto had never seen one before and, to be honest, it was quite scary. It didn’t last but two minutes but for those two minutes, Midoriya’s body jerked and spasmed and he let loose gurgled sounds and choked cries. Shoto called his pokemon back to their balls and rounded to be with the other examinees, his fight obviously over.

“It only makes sense,” murmured the black ponytail girl, Yaoyorozu, he thinks. “That sort of power, it is bound to have a backlash.” Shoto hummed. 

Cementoss tried to lift Midoriya into his arms to carry him towards the sounds of distant sirens but the greenette jolted again, pushing against the man with a frightened cry, forcing Cementoss to drop him. It sounded just like Shoto when he was woken from a nightmare and his sister tried to calm him down before Endeavor woke up. The boy curled in a ball, breathing harshly, a panic attack. The flames, Shoto realized, had long since burned out and Eevee had returned to being the Eevee it was.

“I’m okay,” the boy hissed. “I’m okay. I- it’s just a- a- an overuse e- effect. I’m OKAY.” Shoto walked up to Cementoss, unable to watch the man struggle with how to act around an abuse victim when he didn’t know it was an abuse victim. “Cementoss, the paramedics have arrived, let me take him.” The stony man looked up at him then back at Midoriya contemplative. When the greenette tried to get to his feet and his leg unwillingly jerked out from under him, Cementoss instinctively tried to catch him. 

* **SLAP** * “ _Don’t touch me_.” The hiss sent shivers down his spine.

Midoriya stumbled into him and, surprisingly, he didn’t push away. So it was just Cementoss then. The man, realizing Midoriya’s distress, relented. “Alright, Todoroki, let’s take him to the paramedics.” The hero turned to the other examinees. “Please, wait for a moment. We will move to the final battle shortly.”

Yaoyorozu raised her hand. “Does this mean Midoriya is disqualified?” Shoto felt Midoriya tense in his hold. “No,” Cementoss replied. “Everyone has different drawbacks of their quirks. That is why they attend trainer’s school to work around that. Midoriya still holds his place in the top four.” The greenette let out a breath of relief. Cementoss turned back. “Let’s go.” Midoriya returned his Eevee to its pokeball.

As he walked though, letting Midoriya lean on him, Shoto could only remember the fight. He suppressed a shiver.

If the boy hadn’t collapsed… Shoto isn’t sure that he would have won that fight.

____________________________

It was embarrassing, having a seizure in front of everyone and having to rely on Todoroki to help him the ambulance that was just pulling up. He felt his arm tense.

“Warning,” was all he got out before his left arm shot out and almost slammed into Todoroki’s chest. The boy instinctively let go of him to jump back. Izuku felt himself wobble by the sudden weight of gravity. “Sorry!” Todoroki bolted forward, catching him just in time. Izuku sighed. “Don’t be. I- it’s me who is sorry…”

“Does this… happen often?”

Izuku let out a dry chuckle. “Unfortunately. I thought I was good this time too,” he berated himself. “I can usually get a few out.” “Evolutions?” his support questioned. Izuku hummed.

“Hey, kid,” Izuku’s head shot up.

Standing just before the ambulance, with his long, scraggly black hair, in his black hobo jumpsuit stood the man Izuku won’t admit he was missing for almost three months now: Aizawa Shouta. The man walked over. “Had a feeling this would happen.” He turned to Todoroki and Cementoss. “We can take it from here.” “Eraserhead,” Cementoss greeted. “Aren’t you proctoring the regular exams.” “They ended quite a bit ago.” Izuku will never admit to clinging to the Hobo when he took his shoulders from Todoroki and let him lean on him.

Izuku couldn’t breathe and not because of another seizure. He was here. Everything Aizawa said he would do he actually did. He didn’t lie and even beyond that, he came when he didn’t need to.

He didn’t look up when Cementoss and Todoroki left. Aizawa sighed. “Let’s get you to the school then.” Izuku bit his tongue. He was happy, sure, that Aizawa had come, but more so- “Why?” he whispered. “Why did y- you come?” And, oh, how Izuku hated the way his voice shook. He felt the Hobo take a deep breath as he was leaning against the man. “ **Why would I not come when I knew you would need me?** ”

Izuku grit his teeth. “You didn’t know I would have a spasm.”

“Right.”

“So I didn’t need you.”

“You _didn’t_ and now you do?”

Izuku choked, head snapping up. “Th- that’s-”

“Midoriya,” Aizawa leveled him with a stare, “do you really think that I would spend this much time on someone I didn’t care about?” Izuku lowered his head to hide the tears forming in his eyes. “I’m going to pick you up now, is that okay?” He nodded stiffly. Aizawa knelt down and soon, Izuku’s legs were swept out from under him.

He felt like a little kid cradled in Aizawa’s arms like this and yet… he couldn’t find it in himself to hate it because this was Aizawa and Aizawa cares. But Aizawa is an adult and adults are all liars? They are all liars so he won’t let himself get used to-

Aizawa’s hand came and found its way through his hair. “You are tired,” the man’s voice was soft. “Don’t worry, you passed. Just rest.” Izuku grit his teeth. He can’t like this. He can’t believe this. Aizawa stepped into the ambulance but instead of setting Izuku down on the medical cot, he sat in one of the side chairs and just held Izuku closer. “I’ll protect you.”

And Izuku believed him.

As he drifted off to sleep, Izuku couldn’t help but think: _If only that was true at home._

____________________________

“Yes, hello, this is Midoriya Hisashi.”

…

“I am calling about a building that needs to be demolished or at least reestablished.”

….

“It’s a historical site, I’m sure, but it is old and could pose dangerous.”

…

“In the forest between Vaniville Town, Aquacorde Town, and Santalune City. I will send you the address.”

…

“Thank you.”

____________________________

When he woke up, Izuku was in what he assumed was a hospital but he doesn’t really remember the last time he was in one of these aside from helping Nurse Hope with the injured pokemon at the Pokemon Center and, well, that one is for pokemon. Beside the cot he was in was a dozing hobo.

Izuku pushed himself up, stretching his arms over his head. He winced when his shoulders painfully protested. The greenette remembers his little stunt with the cannon ball. Yeah… maybe not the smartest idea. He looked around at the white walls and the different equipment in the room. He’s in a hospital.

He is in…

Viridian eyes widened. _NO!_ He can’t be in a hospital! Too many risks of people finding out! They _can’t_ find out! He threw off the thin blanket covering him and swung his feet off the bed. Barely, through the roaring blood in his ears and his pounding chest, Izuku heard Aizawa startle awake. He jumped off the bed, head spinning with the sudden rush of blood and adrenaline. Izuku stumbled back against the bed. Feet pounded around the bed. _He’s coming! HE’S COMING!_ “Mi- ri- a.” Izuku pushed himself away from the bed and stumbled forward. Two hands found his shoulders. “Mido- ya!” _Let go… Don’t hurt me!_ He tried to push past but his head was fizzing from lack of oxygen to his lungs. He couldn’t BREATHE.

“IZUKU.”

His head snapped up. Viridian eyes met black. Mr. Midoriya’s eyes are black. _No…_ He fell to his knees, body locking up in fear as he stared into those black orbs. But- “Izuku,” Mr. Midoriya knelt next to him. _Mr. Midoriya doesn’t call me that…?_ “Listen to my voice, not my eyes.” A hand found his back, rubbing soothing circles on his back. Another found his left hand, a thumb rubbing around the back of it. “Breathe with me,” the voice, not Mr. Midoriya’s, said. “Take a deep breath in,” he complied, “and let it out… Good, again. In… and out… In… and out…”

When his vision cleared, Izuku saw Aizawa before him, not Mr. Midoriya. First, he felt relief. Then, he felt fear again. He showed a weakness.

Before Izuku could react, Aizawa raised a hand. “Stop, don’t worry, nothing happened. You are in UA’s nurse’s office. Anything that you _think_ may happen won’t.” The greenette swallowed thickly. Both of them knew what he was thinking but Aizawa wasn’t pressing. He lowered his eyes. “Th- thank you…” The hobo hummed. “Come on, let’s get up,” he stood, holding out his hand. Izuku let the man guide him back onto the bed. “Sorry for calling you ‘Izuku’,” Aizawa said. “I didn’t know what else to do.”

Izuku averted his eyes. “I- it’s okay if you call me that…” he whispered. _Better than ‘Midoriya’._

“What?” the hobo sounded shocked. Izuku blushed, realizing what he had just said. “N- nevermind! Just,” he jumped off the bed again. “I gotta get home,” he brushed past the man with his head low. “Kid,” Izuku turned around just in time to catch the pokeball tossed at him. “You might need that, **Izuku**.” Izuku looked up at Aizawa, stunned. “Th- thank you, A-”

“Call me ‘Shouta’.”

His grip tightened around Chip’s pokeball. His tongue fell dry. He… took a step too far into uncharted territory.

In a landscape of darkness and light, standing in the middle of the dark stood Izuku. In the light stood Aizawa. For _years_ he had longed for someone to extend an escape rope to him. There Aizawa was, with his hand out, extending to him freedom. And Izuku… took a step forward. And another and another until he was sprinting towards it. The closer he got to the light, the more he could see. Serena and Hitoshi were on the other side. Nurse Hope was on the other side. And then… Izuku saw them: Mrs. Midoriya and Inha. They stood in the light. Inha’s laughter flooded his senses. Such _joy_ . Izuku’s feet slowed. He came to a full stop right before the line, his foot lingering just in front of him, the smallest bit of light casting its glow on him. It was so _warm_ . He heard footsteps behind him. Glancing over his shoulder, Izuku saw him: Mr. Midoriya. He looked back at the light. Inha, held in Mrs. Midoriya’s arms, waved at him with that sweet, _innocent_ smile of hers.

Ah. Izuku almost forgot.

He turned back to the dark, back into Mr. Midoriya’s tight grip around his neck. He let the man place the collar and leash around his neck.

Right. This is where he belongs. Izuku doesn’t belong in the light. Izuku can’t go to that place of warmth and joy. Other people belong in that light and Izuku serves as the mediator between them and the dark. He belongs in the dark, taking their place. And that…

… is okay.

____________________________

“Call me ‘Shouta’.”

Shouta could almost visibly see the light of hope flicker in Mi- Izuku’s eyes. But the kid’s face fell flat and then it fell altogether. Acceptance and remembrance took over that light and it dimmed to nothing more than a brief glimmer of what could have been. Izuku didn’t respond. He turned away and left without another word.

…

…

…

* **BAM** *

Shouta’s fist lingered on the metal railing of the cot. _Dang it…_ He messed up. He knows he messed up. He just… he wanted Izuku to trust him! He thought that maybe, _maybe_ , first name-basis would open up a new door in Izuku’s mind and he could finally start getting answers but Shouta was naive. Of course he couldn’t, especially not after that reaction that Izuku had to simply seeing the blacks of his eyes.

Shouta sighed, pressing his hands to his face. It hurts, watching someone’s hope being snuffed out like that so forcibly. 

But… Izuku reacted. Shouta had to believe that his efforts were not for naught. When school started up, he would see Izuku everyday. He would reignite that light. That small glimmer was still there, he knows it. Shouta would protect that light and, when the time comes, he will pull Izuku into it.

____________________________

Izuku held Chip close to his chest as they rode the bus back to Vaniville Town from Aquacorde Town. He was dead tired. Of _course_ he had a spasm! Why wouldn’t he? And he was doing so well too…

Of course, he had felt the oncoming effects but he couldn’t just let himself be beaten like that. How pitiful. Izuku would not be looked down upon like that. In the end, his and Chip’s pride got the best of them. At least Cementoss said that he still had his spot in the top four. The bus came to a stop and Izuku got off. He remembers that time two years ago when Aizawa first made the offer to him.

\-----

_‘Call me ‘Shouta’.’_

\-----

Oh, how he wishes he could. Izuku walked up to the Pokemon Center and his feet stopped along with his heart. There stood Mr. Midoriya. Izuku held his breath as the man strode up to him. “Mikumo,” the man greeted, voice low so no one could possibly hear him use that name, “welcome back.” Izuku swallowed thickly. He nodded. Mr. Midoriya jerked his head. “Let’s go. I want to hear _all_ about it when we get back.”

Izuku kept his head low, Chip padding by his side, every once in a while brushing against his leg to show his support.

“Ah,” Mr. Midoriya stopped and pointed to the trees in the distance. “Certainly you would like to tell your friends about it.” Izuku’s heart dropped. _The forest… He can’t possibly know about the mansion, can he? What is he planning?_ “What? Go on.” Izuku hesitated. A burning hand found his shoulder. “I said: GO.” With that, Izuku and Chip ran off as fast as they could.

_Something_ happened. Izuku just knows it. But what? It wouldn’t hurt Serena or Hitoshi, right? Certainly not! Mr. Midoriya is a lot of things but he isn’t stupid. He wouldn’t hurt other children. There are too many traces to be left. Then what? What?!

Izuku broke into the clearing that the mansion stood in. “Izuku!” “Espurr!” “Fennekin!” He and Chip came to a stop as his friends who were waiting for him ran up to him. Their faces were sad. Past them was the mansion but around it was a bunch of yellow caution tape. “Izuku, the mansion is…” Hitoshi gestured to the sign in front of it. _Please…_ Izuku walked up to it slowly. _Please!_

**ORAN VINE MANSION: SCHEDULED FOR DEMOLITION**

* **thud** * Izuku fell to his knees. “No…” Hitoshi and Serena came up beside him, “I’m sorry,” he whispers. Serena tilts her head. “Why? Izuku, you did nothing wrong.” _Oh, if only you knew._ He tried to keep a smiley face as they talked just like normal about their own respective exams, Serena’s had been the day before, but it was hard. Though, it was hard for all of them. Izuku was counting down the minutes. He knew Mr. Midoriya was waiting for him still. The longer he took the angerier the man would be but Izuku has never cared much about that at the mansion.

Only now… the mansion was disappearing. His and Chip’s safe place was being stripped away from him.

What more could Mr. Midoriya take?!

“What will we do now?” Serena asked as they got ready to split. “I guess we could always meet here or- Oh! I know!” Hitoshi pointed off into the forest. “We could meet at the pond we train at!” Izuku’s smile was tight. “That could work.”

Serena hummed. “I will only be able to come on the weekends though…” Both boys whipped their heads to her. She frowned. “If I get into this school it’s, well, it’s a boarding school!” Izuku thinks his mind stopped working for a second. “Wh- what…?”

She glanced up, twiddling her fingers. “Is that… okay?”

Okay? Ah. Right. It’s… okay.

He smiled. “Of course! We support you, right, Hitoshi?” The purple-haired boy nodded. “Yup! We will just meet on the weekends then.” They split their ways soon after, Izuku and Serena together. “I’m still going to need your amazing costume designs, Izuku,” she winked. Izuku smirked. “I guess I can’t slack off in that area either, huh?” She giggled. At the edge of the forest, they split ways but Izuku lingered. As soon as the girl was out of sight, Mr. Midoriya walked out of his hiding place and Izuku’s forced glee didn’t have to be forced anymore as his smile fell. “Let’s go,” the man patted his back harshly.

It was nearing the evening but Inha and Mrs. Midoriya weren’t around. Following the routine, Izuku let himself into his basement. Down there, however, he spun around. “How could y-!” * **SLAP** *

Izuku stumbled back, holding his cheek. Anger flared in him but it was soon quenched by fear as Mr. Midoriya towered over him. “Do you think I didn’t know?” “I- I-” “I let you have your little fun but you’ve been a really bad boy, Mikumo.”

Mikumo. Mikumo. Izuku is okay. Mikumo could deal with this. Izuku is OKAY.

Mr. Midoriya snapped his fingers. Smokey came up behind Izuku, grabbing his shirt between his strong jaws. The greenette screeched as he was swung around and thrown against the wall. His head spun as he slid down the wall, leaving a streak of blood. Chip tried to run to him. “Skipping school, smoking, going to the Pokemon Center,” Mr. Midoriya’s foot connected to Chip’s stomach and the small creature went flying. “What else have you been doing behind my back, huh?” Mikumo pushed himself up on unsteady legs. “What, getting all confident because you found a few people who can _tolerate_ you?”

Mikumo jumped out of the way of roaring flames. Not fast enough. It caught his pant leg, immediately igniting them. He screamed, rolling on the floor to put out the flames. In that time, Mr. Midoriya had gotten close. He tried to run, but on his scorched legs, the pain kept him maimed as the foot planted itself in his back, forcing him down, his chin hitting the cold floor with a * **clack** *. Mr. Midoriya reached down and took a handful of green curls, yanking his head up.

It was so different from Aizawa’s…

“They don’t know what a curse you are, Mikumo,” Mr. Midoriya hissed, smoke filling Mikumo’s airways as the man bent down, their faces so close their cheeks were almost touching. He squeezed his eyes shut. _It’s okay. It’s okay. Everything is o-_ “ **What would you do if, I don’t know, one of them were to suddenly disappear?** ”

Izuku’s eyes widened. “Y- you wouldn’t!” * **BAM** * He blacked out for a second as his face was smashed into the concrete below, vision spinning as his head was yanked up again. Iz- NO, Mikumo. Izuku is okay. Mikumo gasped as Mr. Midoriya applied more pressure to his back, squeezing Mikumo’s airways. “Wouldn’t I?” “I- it’s too mu- much of a ri-” * **BAM** *

“Hmm. I don’t know,” Mr. Midoriya took his foot off, pulling Mikumo up with him, the boy gasping for air. He is sure his lungs are bruised. Wouldn’t be the first time. Lifting him high, Mr. Midoriya’s fist met his abdomen. The air Mikumo had just gotten was forced from his body. He was dropped to the ground. Tears streaming, Mikumo looked up. Black eyes glared victoriously over him.

“Sure, I might get put in jail,” Mr. Midoriya grinned, “but before I am reported, **how many do you think I could kill?** ”

Izuku’s viridian eyes widened. _No…_ “ **Serena** ,” _Please… “_ **Shinsou** _,” I’m sorry… “_ **_NURSE HOPE._ ** _”_

“PLEASE!” he screeched. “DON’T HURT THEM!” Mr. Midoriya laughed. * **BAM** * His foot connected with Izuku’s jaw. He fell to the ground. “Beg.” And Izuku did. He got down on his knees and pressed his forehead to the ground. Mr. Midoriya’s foot rested on his head, forcing it further. “I- I- I’LL DO BETTER! I’LL BE BETTER! I’LL DO ANYTHING!”

Mr. Midoriya cracked his knuckles. “That’s more like it. Know your place, dog.” Izuku took the kicks, the punches, the flames. “You’re worthless!” He takes the pain, the tears, the blood. “You don’t deserve everything I’ve done for you!” He took it all. “You don’t deserve to breathe,” Mr. Midoriya hissed. He took a step back, marveling at the art he made of Izuku, the way the blood pooled from the greenette.

“ **Learn your place before I use your** **_precious friends_ ** **to remind you where you belong.** ”

He left, leaving a battered, mentally shattered Izuku on the floor of the basement. The greenette curled in on himself.

_It’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokay -I’m Sorry- It’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokay -I’m Sorry- It’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokay -I’m SoRrY- It’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokay -I’M SORRY- It’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokay- I’M SORRY- It’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokay!_

He couldn’t believe this. He did this. After trying so hard to protect everyone, he put them in danger. He has to do better, be better, MAKE EVERYTHING OKAY.

Oh, but it is okay. It IS. He’s sure of it. Because if it wasn’t okay then what? What would he do? It doesn’t matter because EVERYTHING IS OKAY. He just has to do better, be better, be okay. Be okay. Be OkAy.

He doesn’t register getting to his feet, a concussion, probably, dissociation, most likely. He doesn’t care because no matter what it is it is okay and it being okay is all that matters as he crouches and wades his hands through his blood that has gathered on the floor. Chip tries to push against him, to make him stop, but it is lost on him. Crazed eye and split-faced maniacal grinned, Izuku stumbled towards the concrete wall, reaching forward. His wet hands make contact with it with a * **SPLAT** *.

As he draws out the letters, a giggle bubbles up inside him. “It’s okay- hee hee- It’s okay.” He writes the word, his favorite word, his most _necessary_ word on the wall in his crimson blood that Mr. Midoriya did the favor of spilling for him, the favor of reminding him _what_ he was.

**OKAY**

Oh, but it’s not enough. It _needs_ to be okay. He spins around, almost tripping over Chip who- WHYISHETRYINGTOSTOPHIMNOTHINGISWRONGIZUKUISOKAY! He runs back and forth between his puddle of bloody paint and makes his art on all of the walls of the basement, of his _home_ . His home is _okay_. A little bit of “okay” here, a little bit of “okay” here!

Over time, the giggle grow into laughter, unrestrained, so painfully forcing its way from his chest that no longer accepts air as he heaves, falling back against the concrete wall behind the workout equipment. Through the weights, the bars, the blood-stained gear, Izuku looks out at his art.

**OKAY** **OKAY** **OKAY** **OKAY**

 **OKAY** **OKAY** **OKAY**

 **OKAY** **OKAY** **OKAY** **OKAY**

“HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! ISN’T IT BEAUTIFUL, CHIP?! ISN’T IT OKAY?! IT IS! IT IS!” He throws out his arms, catching the distraught pokemon in them and pulling it to his chest, his still flowing blood staining his brown fur. “BEAUTIFUL! IT’S OKAY! IT’S OKAY, CHIP! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!”

Through his mania, he does not feel asphyxiation take over, the lack of air forcing his body to start shutting down. But he doesn’t care. That’s okay too. But the slower it runs, the less he can focus and the more pain and sadness begins to register. And he falls to the ground in his ball of hiccups and blood.

“It’s okay,” he whispers. “Serena is okay. Hitoshi is okay. Inha is okay. Mrs. Midoriya is okay. Nurse Hope is okay. Chip is okay. Izuku is-” he stops. “Izuku is-” the words won’t come to him. They fall short, like a block in the road. “I- I- Izuku is-”

There is a fine line between two sides of life. On one side there is light. In the light there are smiles and laughter. In the light there is joy and peace and safety. It is warm. But on the other side of that glorious light is the world unseen to most eyes. It is dark, and cold, and scary. It is the tales you only hear of in redemption stories that you never can seem to believe because of course the world couldn’t be that bad! But it is. It is in the dark. And in the dark, there is Izuku. He stands but not for long. He falls. Knee hits the ground and then the other and he struggles to stay above the darkness that threatens to consume him fully. Above him stands a man who joins the darkness. Mr. Midoriya thrives in it, he has made a partnership with the dark to take down Izuku together and slowly, ever so torturously slowly, they are succeeding.

But those redemption stories are true. Izuku _clings_ to those people who say that everything will be _okay_. He clings to the hope that maybe, just maybe, he will have a redemption story of his own.

But hope is fleeting. After all, not everyone gets a redemption story. No, there must always be a dark for there to be a light.

\-----

_‘Call me-’_

\-----

In that light, there is a man. A man who extended a rope. But that rope is still too short, pieces have not yet been tied to it to make Izuku trust its strength. He can not believe it can support the weight of his pain, of the darkness. It is still too short to reach into the darkness. But there is a man, and he is trying. He is extending a rope that dangles, mocking Izuku almost. There is a man.

\-----

_‘Call me-’_

\-----

“ **Shou** \- **ta** ,” a broken voice calls into the darkness.

Izuku is… okay?

____________________________

“We’re here,” the bus driver calls. Shouta hums and stands. “Thank you, sir.” He grinned. “You know, you are the only one who makes me drive this far out here.” Shouta stops at the door, raising an eyebrow. “Don’t you have to anyway.” The driver shrugged. “Well, sure, it’s part of the route, but it’s different when there is someone there.”

Shouta blinked. Somehow, he thinks that the bus driver knows what he is thinking. It is different for Izuku when someone is there.

He is here.

Shouta nods and gets off. He makes his way along the dirt roads that have become surprisingly familiar to him. He waves to a couple of playing school children who recognize him now. He watches as the Rhyhorn run in their field as he passes.

Vaniville Town. It is small and quaint and nothing like the city. Shouta likes it.

He walks up to a house. It’s a light yellow and on the white mailbox, a bit dan from dust now, it reads: **MIDORIYA**. Raising his fist, Shouta knocks on the white door. It takes a bit, but it opens revealing a man, Mr. Midoriya, holding a little girl. She has long, straight black hair and black eyes. “Hello, Mr. Midoriya,” he greets. “I am Aizawa Shouta, Professional Hero Eraserhead. I am the hero who recommended your son, Midoriya Izuku, for the recommendation exams. I would like to talk with you about his potential future at UA Trainer’s Academy.”

To his merit, Shouta is impressed the man showed no sign of fear when he mentioned he was a hero. Instead, he stepped aside and allowed Shouta in, not even worried that there could be signs of abuse in the house. “Of course, I remember you! Come in!” Mr. Midoriya opened the door wider for him.

  
  
  
  


**The man in the light took a step into the dark.**


	10. The End Of Summer Break

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another self-explanatory chapter title? No way!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone?

Shouta followed Mr. Midoriya in.

”Inko,” the man called, a short, thin woman soon coming out of the kitchen. The resemblance to Izuku was uncanny. “Can you take Inha to her room?” The woman smiled and took the girl. “Of course!”

“Mommy!” The little girl, Inha, reached out and let the mother take her as the two men turned to the dining room. From the hall, though, Shouta heard it: “ **Mommy? Who’s Izuku?** ” He bit his tongue.  _ What? _ Mr. Midoriya sighed sadly. “Please, forgive her, Inha has short term memory loss.” Mr. Midoriya frowned. “Just last week she forgot her own mother…” Shouta hummed. “My condolences.” He didn’t know if that was fake or not. It could just be a ploy, Shouta had come here with purposeful reservations. Still, if that was fake, Shouta had to admit that Mr. Midoriya had great acting prowers. 

“Might I ask where Midoriya is at this time?” Shouta asked as he took a seat at the table, Mr. Midoriya joining him. “Of course,” the man replied. “I’m afraid he is resting. I am sure as you were the one to recommend him that you are aware of his seizures. They take quite a toll on his body.” Shouta nodded. “I am.” The man smiled. “It makes me so happy that someone finally recognized him. It has been quite the struggle as you can imagine for one being without an element and without a quirk.”

Shouta nodded again. Mr. Midoriya… He wasn’t like Shouta thought he would be. In fact, nothing in this house was. It was well lived in and there were no signs of abuse, not from the daughter or mother either. Was it really just a rebellious phase?

Shouta cut that line of thought right then and there. Of course there wouldn’t be. If Mr. Midoriya had this much control of Izuku then of course he would be prepared. He cannot be swayed. Shouta is a hero. He has been trained in recognizing signs of abuse. But that wasn’t all he recognized. No, he noticed how from the get go, Mr. Midoriya was trying to avert his attention to Shouta’s own mind, using phrases such as ‘as you were the one’ and ‘as you can imagine.’ He is trying to direct attention off of himself while simultaneously making Shouta question his own reasons for coming here, whether the man knew what Shouta was looking for or not. He also sent his daughter and wife away. Usually the wife would stay for the conversation and while it is certainly important that Mrs. Midoriya watches over their daughter with supposed short term memory loss, that could have been a ploy too. It may have just been an excuse so the naive little girl didn’t give away unnecessary information.

The web of lies spun around this house was becoming clear to him. However, they might not be lies. Shouta’s reservations for why he hasn’t pursued too close of a bond with Izuku and Chip is prevalent because while there are  _ signs _ there is no  _ evidence _ that the boy is being abused and this house, this family, this man who seems, honestly? Perfectly normal. They aren’t evidence either and Shouta finds himself second guessing his previous accusations.

And the second he does, Izuku’s frightened face flashes in his mind. His cries over the phone echo in his ears. He can’t let himself get trapped in this web of lies. Shouta must stand strong.

“Elementlessness and quirklessness do not mean uselessness,” Shouta simply responds. Mr. Midoriya grins. “I’m glad you think so. Now, what is it you were wanting to talk about regarding Izuku’s attendance? Were the exams not just today? Is it not too soon to know the results?” Shouta nodded. “For the normal exams, due to the amount of examinees, that is the case,” he replies, “but seeing as there were only 40 recommended, the grading went much faster. Midoriya should be receiving his letter of acceptance shortly.” Mr. Midoriya clapped his hands together. “That’s great! I cannot wait to tell him when he wakes up!” Shouta held his tongue.  _ So he is keeping with that story then _ . “Right.” He moved on. “I wanted to talk with you about the living arrangements.”

“ **_Oh?_ ** ” the first sign of defensiveness from the man before him.

“As I am sure you are aware,” Shouta used Mr. Midoriya’s methods against him, “from Vaniville Town to Lumiose City it is a three hour commute and-”

\-----

_ ‘Aizawa… if I make it into UA, can you do something for me…?’ _

_ It was the first time he had seen Midoriya so scared and contemplative about asking something, not just demanding it like the brash boy he was. _

_ ‘What is it?’ _

_ ‘On the start times, can you say that it starts an hour earlier? Just make a random copy with the wrong times?’ _

_ Shouta blinked. ‘Why?’ _

_ ‘I just… want to be out… longer…’ _

\-----

“- that would mean that Midoriya would have to wake up at near two in the morning to make it to school on time for 6:30.”

Shouta complied with Izuku’s request. Though it was probably illegal or whatever, it was a brief glimpse of life Izuku was trying so hard to hide from him and it showed the trust the boy was starting to place in him. That and it was also one of the few actions Shouta had seen Izuku take towards his own safety aside from hating every adult in sight. Shouta needed to foster and raise that trust. He is sure Nedzu will forgive him.

Mr. Midoriya hummed. “Is that not a bit early?” Shouta shrugged. “We are preparing heroes for the worst conditions. If they cannot handle being at school that early, well, they cannot handle being a hero.” An oh, how Mr. Midoriya’s eyes lit up. “Quite right!” he exclaimed. “Sometimes children need to be given that extra shove!” He sounded… a bit too perky about that.

“That being said,” Shouta moved on, “we are willing to provide accommodations for Midoriya on or nearby UA’s campus.” Mr. Midoriya tapped his chin. “I don’t recall UA ever doing this before.” Black eyes met black eyes, dual colors and the battle field was laid out before them. Mr. Midoriya  _ knew _ what he was doing. “Correct,” Shouta said. “We haven’t but we are trying to make it a bit easier for those who have specifically larger commute times to get to and from school.”

“Now isn’t that a bit hypocritical?” Shouta blinked at Mr. Midoriya’s accusation. “Did you not just say that you are trying to push your students to excellence through harsher conditions?” Shouta’s eyes widened. He messed up, a rookie mistake. “I-” “Either way, we cannot allow that,” Mr. Midoriya interrupted. “Izuku is very important to Inha and her progress. We are trying to keep our family together so she can remember us all. The doctors say that her memory will improve with time, even if she does not ever have it fully up to par. He said that if we keep diligent she should at least be able to remember all of us without ever forgetting in her adult years. I am sorry but Izuku will remain her for his duration of time attending UA Trainer’s Academy.”

Shouta… lost. He sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I understand. Just don’t blame me if you have to settle the feud with our principal. Nedzu does love his debates,” he joked, trying to turn things a bit lighter before he leaves. “Don’t worry,” Mr. Midoriya chuckled, “ _ we are prepared _ . Now, is that all?” Shouta nodded, standing. “Thank you for his time.” He was led to the front door. “Please tell Midoriya I said hello when he wakes up,” Shouta stepped out of the house when the man opened the front door for him.

“ **Oh** ,” Mr. Midoriya grinned, “ **I will.** ” A shiver ran down Shouta’s spine. “Good day, Mr. Aizawa.” And the door was closed.

Shouta… screwed up. 

____________________________

Hisashi closed the door behind the hero with a smirk.

Oh yes, he did know why the man had come and Hisashi  _ thrived _ when he saw confusion flash in Mr. Aizawa’s eyes at how perfect everything was. But of course it was perfect. Hisashi  _ made _ it perfect. He created the perfect family. “Inko! You can come out now!” And his wife did, perfectly obedient. And so did his perfect daughter, running up to him with a “Daddy!” Everything in this house was perfect. But alas, why did Mikumo have to try and tamper with their picture perfect family. Can’t he see it is a lost cause?

After all, not even Inko remembered the name ‘Izuku’ even existed.

____________________________

Izuku got accepted…

IZUKU GOT ACCEPTED!

And, oh, how he would love to celebrate and cheer about it. He did, with Chip in the dark of their basement, and with Hitoshi and Serena when they both got their letters of acceptance as well. But Mr. Midoriya also wanted to ‘celebrate.’ After a brief “Congratulations,” it was right back to training. That was his congratulatory gift, you see. Now that he was accepted he needed to be prepared and to show Izuku how happy he was that the boy got in, Mr. Midoriya took it upon himself to be the one to train him for it, just like he has for the past ten years of Izuku’s life.

And that is okay. Nothing new. It’s normal. So he got a bit more violent than he was in the past, that’s okay. Izuku can endure it because if Izuku handles it then Serena, Hitoshi, Mrs. Midoriya, Inha, and Nurse Hope don’t have to endure it. So it would be okay.

Right. It would be. After all, school was starting soon.

About a week after he got his acceptance letter, two weeks after he was accepted into UA Trainer’s Academy, Izuku was finally let out of the basement. The sun. was. BLINDING. He thought his eyes might literally melt right out of his head! He couldn’t even see he was squinting so much and ended up running into-

“Well, hello to you too.”

Izuku’s head snapped up taking in the blurry figure before him. He didn’t mean to say it, it just came out.

“Shouta?” The man took in a sharp breath. “Yeah, kid, it’s me.” Izuku blinked, eyes slightly adjusting to the light now. He blinked a few times. It was still a bit fuzzy but yeah, that was definitely the hobo. “Something wrong with your eyes?” Shouta asked. Shouta asked… Izuku blushed. He called him by his first name. The man chuckled. “Don’t worry about it. I said you could call me that anyway.” The greenette stuffed his hands into his black jean pockets and stormed past. “Whatever,” he huffed.

Shouta fell into step beside him. “So, your eyes?”  _ Ah, he’s still on that? _ Izuku shrugged as he pulled out his pokeball and let Chip out. By now, Chip knew to keep his eyes shut when he came out and Izuku swiftly picked him up and carried the Eevee until his eyes adjusted. If Shouta noticed, he didn’t say anything. “Nothing’s wrong, really. Everything is just a bit blurry.”

“Do you not have glasses?”

“Does it look like I have glasses?”

“Why don’t you get some?”

“Why don’t you come back when I have the money?” Around and around in circles they went until Shouta spoke up as he let Umbreon out: “What if I got you some?” Izuku stumbled a bit but kept his cool. “Yeah right, like you’d do that.” Hobo hummed. “I would. Have you celebrated your acceptance yet?” Izuku nodded. “Of cour-” “Are you lying?” He snapped his teeth together. Shouta let out a huff. “Well, I’m here for the rest of the summer until school starts up again so how about this: I’ll call down an eye specialist and get your eyes checked and then we will see about getting you some glasses. And Chip too, or contacts or something I am guessing for pokemon.”

Izuku kicked at the ground, effectively missing the rock he was aiming for. He clicked his tongue. “Wh-” “If you are going to ask why, I believe I already answered that,” Shouta cut in. “People take care of those important to them,  **Izuku** .” He swallowed thickly. Something in his chest felt warm. “So consider it a gift,” Shouta continued.

Izuku couldn’t find many words to say so instead he just whispered so quietly he didn’t think the man heard it: “Thank you…”

Shouta heard it. 

Izuku didn't particularly care for getting his eyes checked. It happened within the week. Some sketchy-looking man, ie, an adult ever to exist, used this weird tool to like, magnify his eyes or something getting way too close and then had Izuku cover one eye and read something from far away, which he couldn’t, and then do the same with the other eye, which he couldn’t, and then read it again with both eyes, which he couldn’t BUT HE GOT PRETTY DARN CLOSE!

To punching the man straight in the balls, that is… Bless Shouta who stopped him before he could.

He still couldn’t read the words. All of this only for the sketchy-looking adult to tell him that his eyesight sucked. Which Izuku already knew! Apparently it was ‘necessary’ though for his level of prescription. What a load of bull.

“Kid, you are being over-dramatic,” Shouta sighed. “He has literally done nothing wrong.” Izuku raised an eyebrow.  _ Yet.  _ The eye doctor laughed though and waved him as he pulled out a briefcase of glasses already fitted with his prescription, prepacked because he didn’t want to make the trip back and forth again. “It’s fine, I understand. I would have reservations too if some random person started to look at my eyes.” He opened the case to reveal a bunch of different glasses, different frames and all. “Since I do look at eyes, I can say that yours are really pretty,” Izuku blushed. “It isn’t ideal, but the slight fog over your eyes makes them look sort of whimsical. I’ve always loved seeing how eyes change with damage and age.” Izuku tilted his head. “A fog over my eyes?”

Sketch-man nodded, taking out a pair of glasses with gray frames and handing them to Izuku. “I’d say cataracts,” he held up a mirror for Izuku to look as he slid on the glasses. HIS VISION WAS SO CLEAR! And, looking into the mirror with said clear vision, he could see the fogginess Sketch-man was speaking of. “Cataracts, if not treated properly in time, can cause blindness,” Izuku flinched slightly. Shouta’s hand found his shoulder, oddly comforting. “It is usually caused by age or by damage to the eyes but it can be fixed with surgery.” Izuku hummed.

“That makes sense…” he whispered, not really paying attention as he slipped the glasses on and off, watching the world go from blurry to clear. Shouta heard his words though. The raven-haired man pursed his lips, not willing to break the calm atmosphere at the moment to bring it up.

Izuku tried on multiple pairs of glasses, seeing which frames he liked the best, especially with his style. He didn’t want to admit it but the large circle ones with thin black frames kept catching his eye but they were the nerdy type and he was the bad boy type, obviously, so he couldn’t- “I think those look good,” Shouta mused as he slid the circular ones on for the umpteenth time. Bless the Sketch-man for his patience. “They suit your rounded features.” Izuku blinked.

He couldn’t really tell how ‘rounded’ his face looked anymore. His cheeks had hollowed out over time with the wrong diet matching his thin bones and short body. Izuku… didn’t really like his body much anymore nowadays. He liked it when he was wearing his carefully planned outfits but he mostly liked the clothes. He hated, though, the way his eyes looked slightly sunken in, the way his skin was pale from lack of light, the way his cheeks looked like they were being sucked in by a vacuum or something, and the way his freckles popped so boldly against his skeletal skin tone. He missed the way it looked when he  _ did _ have rounded features and actual meat on his bones aside from the muscles he had built from years of training. Even those didn’t do much to hide his too-thin frame.

But Shouta said he could see his rounded features when he wore these glasses. Shouta always saw the real him. Shouta cared for him, celebrated with him, even got him glasses. Shouta was like a real Da-

Izuku’s train of thought came to a screeching halt. “Izuku?” Ah, his arm was twitching. He needed to  _ calm down _ . He  _ didn’t _ think that and he  _ doesn’t  _ believe that. Shouta is _not_ his father. Nope, not at all. Never has been, never will be. It’s okay. It’s okay. It’s okay. Izuku slid the circular glasses back on his face and turned to Shouta.

Come to think of it… Izuku has never seen Shouta  _ not _ blurry. Sure, when they first met he was much clearer but his vision was still slightly impaired then. Now, though, Izuku got a good look at the man who had somehow gained  _ part _ of his trust. The long, black hair that was badly in need of styling and a haircut (*cough cough* Izuku’s too), the baggy black clothes, the stubble, and then… Izuku could clearly see his black eyes.

He shivered involuntarily.

Somehow, Izuku thinks the man knows what he is thinking because understanding flashes in those black orbs and he reaches up, Izuku flinching, and ruffles Izuku’s hair. Suddenly… those black eyes don’t scare him. “Looking good, kid.”

Izuku goes with the circular glasses with thin, black frames.

Chip was also fitted with a pair of specialized Eevee contacts. Of course, they would have to hide these from Mr. Midoriya but that was okay. He’d been hiding a lot already.

\-----

_ ‘Do you think I didn’t know?’ _

\-----

Maybe…

They couldn’t help it as they walked around town and his head swiveled every which way, taking in the sights he only remembered to be that clear when he was, like, eight or something. To think one can live in a town all their life and still see it in a completely different way just by adding some fancy glass.

Izuku lifted them and pinched the bridge of his nose. “You’ll get used to them,” Shouta spoke up. “It’ll be a bit uncomfortable at first.” Izuku hummed and put them back down. He stopped, looking at the ground. “Izuku?” Shouta stopped as well. He didn’t know how to thank the man properly or what he could give him in exchange for everything he had done for him so… Izuku took a few steps forward and stiffly wrapped his arms around him. “Thank you.”

Shouta took a shaky breath. He practically fell to his knees before encasing Izuku in a tight hug, eliciting a startled gasp from the greenette. Pretty soon, though, Izuku melted into the hug. “You know, you are making it really hard not to just open a case and get you out of there right now.” Izuku buried his face in the man’s scarf. “I- I don’t know what you are talking about.” Shouta grunted. “Sure.”

Izuku grit his teeth. “Please… don’t... “ Shouta sighed. “I couldn’t either way, not until you give me evidence.” Izuku chuckled, stepping out of the hug with a playful glimmer in his eyes. “There is no evidence to give!” And with that, he skipped off, ignoring the sad expression in Shouta’s eyes.

“Either way,” Shouta started as they made their way into the forest, “I told Mr. Midoriya,” Izuku flinched slightly because Shouta  _ knows _ that Izuku has began reacting poorly to ‘Dad’ or otherwise, “that it started an hour earlier as requested so when you get there I will try to be out in front of UA to let you in.” Izuku’s head whipped up. “I- I can wait outside!” 

“No, you can’t,” the hobo stated as they broke into the clearing with the pond. “It will be Fall soon and I am not about to let a literal child sit outside at 6:30 in the morning for an hour.” Izuku huffed.

“Ah!” They looked up. Serena jabbed a finger at him from across the pond. “You go glasses!” “It’s about time!” Hitoshi yelled.

____________________________

Shouta and Umbreon watched from the side, sitting on a rock, as Izuku showed off his glasses to Serena and Hitoshi, also recently having gotten on first-name basis with them after they heard him accidentally call Izuku ‘Izuku’ out loud. Glasses weren’t exactly the cheapest thing he had ever invested in but the way the boy’s and his Eevee’s eyes lit up from being able to  _ see _ , well, that made the dent in his wallet worth it.

Only… it made the dent in his heart bigger too.

When Izuku looked at him for the first time and actually  _ saw _ Shouta’s eyes, it was different from the way he was afraid of seeing him through fuzzy vision. Shouta had a hunch why too. Cataracts in children and teens typically only happen through damage to the eyes which Shouta would need to look into later because that could become much needed evidence in the future. But that also means, as Izuku could see him somewhat clearer back when he was twelve, it has been progressive cataracts that means the last time he had seen black eyes clearly was probably when he was very young and, considering one gets diagnosed ask elementless around four years old, probably when his home situation took a turn for the worse.

It was just a hunch but when Izuku finally got a good look at his eyes for the first time he was most likely thrown back to when he first truly felt fear and rejection from his family too.

The human mind scars just as much as the body. Even though some people say that they don’t remember much as children, some things you simply cannot forget. Even children in war-torn countries that have grown up will say that they still remember the explosions and bombs and sometimes even the bodies because traumatic experiences cannot simply be forgotten with age.

But when Shouta reached out and placed his hand on Izuku’s head he saw how those foggy eyes cleared, metaphorically that is. He recognized Shouta as someone outside of his frame of hated, trustless vision. So that leaves the question: Where does Shouta stand in Izuku’s mind?

Is he a part of the group of trustable such as Hope, Serena, and Hitoshi? Is he just outside of it? Can he get in it?

Is it safe to get in it?

\-----

_ ‘Shouta, you best watch what you say and do for that boy,’ Chiyo warned. ‘If he is truly being abused as you claim and yet he is clinging to you as you claim, it may not be safe for you to get much closer.’ _

_ ‘What do you mean?’ _

_ ‘Clinginess is a sign of abuse to some degree. Not always, some are just natural people-people but you’ve described to me this boy as very much not a people-person. A lot of abused or neglected children will cling to adults, even if they typically hate adults, when the adult starts to show signs of trustworthiness or simply even just paying attention to them more than others.’ _

_ ‘How does this make it dangerous then?’ Shouta asks. _

_ ‘It makes it dangerous because he could cling to you but if you are not willing to pursue such a close bond with this boy beyond student-teacher then you could potentially harm his mental state more if you began to show signs of withdrawal from him. Shouta, you purposefully avoid getting close with kids and even your own students. This is the first time I have seen you actively try and get close with one but if you truly care for Midoriya as much as you seem to, you need to think of his mental health in relation to you. If you aren’t willing to pursue a stronger connection, not saying father-son or anything that drastic, but if you continue to naively care for this boy without considering the consequences then you could end up hurting him and yourself along the way.’ _

\-----

Shouta… didn’t know how to respond to that. He remembers Hope’s words about him being similar to a father figure to Izuku. He supposes he shouldn’t be wondering about things like these if he doesn’t know where Izuku stands with him either. He’d definitely say that he cares more for the boy than he does his students but as a son?

He had begun thinking a bit like that until he visited the Midoriya household and found that it was not necessarily a bad household. Even Mr. Midoriya, though a bit sketchy, seemed like a loving father. Shouta can’t just come in and destroy that or make things awkward like that.

Only… Shouta has been here for two weeks now and only now in these past few days has he seen Izuku. Izuku wasn’t simply ‘resting’ these past two weeks and now that he is here he is favoring not using his right arm, winces when he moves too dramatically, and he has a slight limp. He was not simply resting and Shouta was conflicted about the boy’s home life.

Can he- No.  _ Does he _ consider Izuku a son?

“Shouta!” He blinks, having zoned out. The green-haired boy in question waves him over from the edge of the pond. His smile grows when Shouta actually stands up because, yes, an adult is making the effort to do even that much for him. They are skipping rocks and Shouta is joining in, apparently. When Serena and Hitoshi aren’t looking, Shouta pats Izuku’s head. Viridian eyes look up at him. Shouta smiles.

_ Yes. Yes he does. _

____________________________

“Hey, hey, hey! You two need to design your costumes!” Izuku and Hitoshi looked up at Serena’s call. Espurr dropped the rock he had been using his psychic powers to cheat with on skipping rocks.

Izuku looked at Hitoshi, Hitoshi looked at Izuku. They both turned to Shouta.

The man in question sighed. “Yeah.” Izuku  _ beamed _ . He gets to design something for himself now! He’s never done that before! His friends noticed his jitteriness and all laughed. “Come on,” Hitoshi slapped his shoulder. “I know you have your sketchbook with you.” Serena giggled. “Since when does Izuku not?”

They had all made it into their desired schools. Serena would be leaving in a month to move into her dorm so they were trying to get in as much time together as possible. After all, he school was even farther away than UA!

The Tripoka Contest Trainee School is all the way in Shalour City which is, like, seven hours from Vaniville Town! That’s four hours from Lumiose City! But it is where all of the top stars and queens get their training. Serena, the girl from little ol’ Vaniville, was going to be the first person from their town to make it. Izuku was also the first to make it into UA, aside from Bakugou who also made it but he’d cross that bridge when he came to it. 

The judges were, in fact, impressed by Serena being willing to wear something so outgoing right from the get go. Izuku wasn’t getting on no high rocker but she did mention that they were also impressed with the gown itself, very much fond of the design.

The four and their pokemon gathered around a flat rock to get to work on their costumes.

“I guess,” Hitoshi mused, “I’ve always thought it would be good for me to be an underground hero, sort of like you, Shouta.” Hitoshi and Serena had grown closer to the man as well. “I think my quirk would be better in the dark.” Shouta nodded. “That makes sense. No offense, but it is one easily avoidable, even if you have Espurr and his moves to back you up.” “None taken.”

“So, still going with dark themes then?” Izuku suggested. Hitoshi nodded. “I know psychic types are supposed to be whimsical but I really don’t want to follow that if possible.” Izuku hummed. Hitoshi’s element symbol was on his right shoulder blade. Some heroes choose to flaunt their symbol while others decide not to give away a possible idea of what their quirk could be beforehand. In Hitoshi’s case, they’d try and cover it up which wouldn’t be hard considering it’s position. “I’m thinking something more military-like. Super cool stuff and all.” Izuku nodded, tapping the pencil to his chin. A lot of the time, when doing stuff like this, they gave him a lot of the reigns as they weren’t as fashionably inclined as he was. “Okay, I’ve got an idea but I still want your input as this is your costume after all.” Hitoshi nodded and they got to work. In the end, this is what they came up with for Hitoshi’s and Espurr’s costumes:

Hitoshi would wear a pair of black military cargo pants that would be stuffed into black combat boots. His top would consist of a tight turtleneck that had no sleeves and was also black. It would be tucked into his pants that would have a dark purple utility belt and underneath the shirt would be a bulletproof vest. Strapped to his left leg would be a knife holder which would, of course, hold a semi-long blade which he’d have to learn to use in time. On his hands were tight black gloves that went just below the wrist. Over his mouth and nose would be a black voice changing device that they styled to both look and act like the bottom of a military gas mask with the two air filters on either side. He was also equipped with black military-looking sunglasses that looked to be unreasonable in the night but were actually nightvision and heat sensory.

Espurr’s consisted of an Espurr-sized black military jacket and similar glasses.

Hitoshi’s eyes sparkled as he showed the drawing to Espurr. Izuku  _ thrived _ off that inaudible feedback. He loved it when his friends liked what he and Chip designed for them.

“Well, you definitely have to be a spotlight hero with that power of yours,” Serena leaned rested her elbow on his shoulder. Izuku hummed.  _ I don’t think I have a choice. Mr. Midoriya wants me to bring him a good name. Screw him… _ Izuku glances over at Serena and Hitoshi.

\-----

_ ‘Learn your place before I use your precious friends to remind you where you belong.’ _

\-----

Izuku quickly looked away.

Dang it. He couldn’t even feel free away from home now!

“I guess,” he mused. “Does that mean I have to wear something flashy?” Serena and Hitoshi narrowed their eyes at him. “You of all people have no right to sound disgusted at that,” Serena bit. “You literally stand out most in this town with your style.” Izuku blushed, turning and lifting his head defiantly. Shouta chuckled. “Either way, no, you don’t. In fact, I think something simple would be fine as you change a lot in your forms.” Izuku went back to his sketchbook and nodded. Serena lifted a finger. “You are something like an angel with your powers!” Izuku and Chip looked at each other.  _ “What…?”  _ Hitoshi mimicked their thoughts. Serena smiled. “You know, like doing something totally impossible and the like so it definitely has to reflect that!” Izuku tapped his pencil to his chin.

“That sounds stu-” “I like that,” Izuku spoke over Hitoshi. “Simple that can fit with anything that we change into. My own forms have been growing as well. Like I grew leaves on my arms when Chip evolved into Leafeon. It is going to need to be flexible and changeable on the fly if my form decides to start becoming even more prominent which, at this rate, seems likely. Angel, huh? It isn’t a bad base to go off of, at least for the white theme. I think I’ll go with that.”

Serena gawked at him. “Really?  _ REALLY?! _ I am helping the designer!” She punched the air. The boy’s rolled their eyes at her antics. Izuku got to work. In the end, these were Izuku’s and Chip’s costumes:

Needing to stick simple, they went with the white theme. Izuku’s costume consisted of a white, skin-tight top with sleeves that went to the middle of his upper arm, just a few inches below his shoulder. It, too, was a turtleneck. Over top of it was a sleek, sleeveless white vest that looked a bit like a formal blazer but more futuristic. His pants were still tight but slightly more breathable to avoid showing off the less… PG13 parts of him. They went to just above his kneecaps and had a pair of fancy-ish white shorts over them to couple with the layering effect he made with the vest and turtleneck. His shoes were sleek and white, not combat boots, going up to mid-calf. Around his eyes were the most ‘notable’ aspect of his costume. He had see-through rainbow chrome eye gear that looked sort of sci-fi. It was framed in white with the chrome part being over his eyes and across his nose to make it one piece. The white framing them went behind his head to secure them. The purpose? For one, looks. For two, they were to be fitted with his prescription so he could, you know, see.

Chip had something similar. He had an Eevee-fitted replica of Izuku’s eye gear for his own eyes and then his torso was fit with a stretchable white vest, a bit more open at the top to accommodate evolving into Flareon and Jolteon as their neck fur tended to be more full.

Both of their costumes had notes to make them fireproof and waterproof too.

Some may say they looked a bit plain, others may say they look really clean cut and cool. One thing is for sure, they will look a lot cooler once they evolve.

Shouta held out his hand. “I’ll take them to UA personally since I do have to return for the weekend.” Izuku’s head snapped up. Why was he so defensive about Shouta leaving? The man rolled his eyes. “I’ll be back after the weekend. I still have a job, you know, and I still have to go on patrol too or I really will lose my hero license.” Izuku hummed. “Not that I care if you are here or not,” he grumbled, handing over the sketch.

But he did care.

And so, with much laughter, a bit of sorrow, and a lot of well-hidden pain and injuries on Izuku’s and Chip’s part, Summer Break came to a close. Izuku, Chip, Hitoshi, and Espurr were all there to send the girl off who had to leave for Shalour City early. Izuku tried to be respectful of Ms. Williams who was there as well because she was going to drive up and help Serena move in before coming back like the good mother she was.

If only Izuku knew what that felt like…

Shouta had to go back to UA the week before school started as he was a homeroom teacher there.

“I’m going to miss you so much!!!” Serena wailed, arms slung around them. “Fennekin!!!” Izuku pats her back. “We’ll miss you too. You have to send Hitoshi videos of all of your performances!” Serena nodded. “I will!” They stepped out of the hug. “And you have to keep designing, mk?” Izuku nodded. “Of course! I will always and forever design your costumes!” Hitoshi nodded sharply. “And I’ll have them made at the dress shop and sent to you.” Mrs. Williams smiled. “I’ll be paying of course.” Serena wiped tears from her eyes. “You guys are the best!” Izuku held his head high. “Oh, I know.” He promptly earned himself a whap upside the head.

Izuku watches numbly as the car drives away.

Serena is leaving. She’s leaving… It hurts. It feels like everything he loves is being stripped away piece by piece, little by little at the hands of Mr. Midoriya. That man… Izuku  _ hates _ that man most out of every adult on this planet. At least now he can’t hurt Serena. Not with her being seven hours away. Hitoshi? In Aquacorde Town he is only an hour away from here. Mr. Midoriya could still get to him. Nurse Hope lives here in Vaniville Town. Mrs. Midoriya and Inha live in the house above his. They are all still at risk.

It’ll be okay though. Izuku will protect them.

“A week away and we will be attending UA,” Hitoshi mused from beside him. “Can you believe it?” Izuku looked up at the sky. He smirked. “Yeah.

“You start school tomorrow, brat,” Mikumo is on his knees again, body up right but head low as Mr. Midoriya stands over him. “I don’t think I should have to say it.”

Mikumo shakes his head. “I- I won’t tell a- anyone,” he whispers. He can feel Mr. Midoriya smirks from here. “Good mutt.” Viridian eyes widen, air escaping his lungs as the foot meets his abdomen. Mr. Midoriya kneels down, his hand glides along Mikumo’s jawline forcing him to look up. The touch, strange, sends a shiver down the greenette’s spine. It feels more invasive than the rest. “Of course, you know what will happen if you do, right?” A puff of smoke is blown into Mikumo’s face. The boy turns away, coughing harshly. 

“I’ll wake you in the morning, let’s say, two-ish?” Mr. Midoriya stands and leaves the basement. Izuku lets out a shaky sign. Chip wanderers over, having been released from Smokey’s hold. “I’m okay,” the greenette whispers. He pushes himself to his feet, surveying the walls. A bit fuzzier but easier to see in the dark are the words he wrote in his own blood, the reassurances.  _ OKAY _ . He thinks Mr. Midoriya found pleasure when he first saw what Izuku had done with the place.

After all, every house has pictures on the walls. What difference is his own art?

“Let’s get ready for bed.”

_ Knocking _ on his  _ door _ and turning the  _ knob _ , Izuku pushes his way into his  _ bedroom _ . He grabs a torn t-shirt and sweats for pajamas before leaving, closing the  _ door _ . Walking in front of the workout equipment, around the ominous dried puddles of blood, Izuku and Chip go to the  _ bathroom. _ In the bathroom hangs his UA Trainer’s Academy uniform. He stares at it for a moment before turning away, a little bit of excitement bubbling in his chest. Getting dressed, Izuku ignores the way the t-shirt only goes to his belly button and the sweats about mid-calf.

After all, everyone has a few pairs of clothes that don’t fit them anymore.

He kneels down and opens the sink cabinet, pulling out his toiletries, ignoring the items that belong in the  _ kitchen _ . When he stands to brush his teeth, on the mirror he sees his art too, the first time he ever wrote in his own blood.  _ OKAY _ . He and Chip quickly finish and put everything away, using the bathroom before leaving. He rounds all the way in front of the equipment, rounding the ominous puddles of dried blood, goes behind the workout equipment, sliding his hands along the art he made on the wall,  _ OKAY _ , and enters the  _ kitchen _ . He kneels by the sink cabinet, opens it, pulls out two cups and two protein bars, acutely ignoring the items that belong in the  _ bathroom _ , and closes it, standing again to see his words of assurance.  _ OKAY _ . He gets him and Chip a drink and the two exit the  _ kitchen _ . They go behind the workout equipment and past his  _ bedroom _ to the  _ dining room _ .

It was a new addition to their house. A bit away from his  _ bedroom _ , left of the  _ bathroom hallway _ was a small empty space with a cardboard box he had pulled from the dumpster behind the school: the  _ table _ . There he and Chip sat on the floor, cups and wrappers on the  _ table _ and they ate their  _ dinner _ . 

Every once in a while Mr. Midoriya will sit at the  _ table _ to watch as Smokey has his way with Izuku and Chip. It’s as if he enjoys making use of the layout the two had made, mocking them as he glows in how screwed up he has made their brains to be forced into making this fake home down here.

But it’s not fake, right? Oh no, there are definitely walls around Izuku’s  _ bedroom _ and there are definitely two different rooms for the  _ kitchen _ and the  _ bathroom _ and there are definitely separate  _ hallways  _ to each of them and there are definitely  _ paintings _ on the walls, be them of blood or not, and there is definitely a  _ table _ and justbecauseyoucan’tseethemdoesn’tmeanthattheydon’texist!

It’s _okay_.

After  _ dinner _ they left the  _ dining room _ and went back to the  _ kitchen _ and deposited their cups in the sink and their in the trash before leaving the  _ kitchen _ and going back to his  _ bedroom _ where he * **knock** * * **knock** * * **knock** *ed on the  _ door _ , foot tapping on the floor to mimic the sound, opened the  _ door _ , entered the  _ room _ , closed the  _ door _ , and finally settled in bed, Chip curling beside him.

His legs, a bit past his calves, hung off the small bed. His hip sunk into the pit that had been made through time in the ratted mattress. He pulled the thin sheet that never quite covered him and left his shivering over his body. His head landed on the hard pillow that always left a crick in his neck and he looked at the wall. On the wall, right where his eyes were, right where he would see it every time he woke up and where it would be the last thing he saw every time he fell asleep was his favorite word:

_ OKAY _ .

And Izuku fell asleep.


	11. UA Trainer's Academy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku's first week or something like that at UA.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone?

* **SPLASH** *

Izuku and Chip woke with a gasp as ice cold water was splashed on them. The greenette sat up, head spinning. He looked over and up and… Mr. Midoriya smirked down at him.

_ What…? _

Mr. Midoriya has never entered his room like this before! He never comes in! The man held a bucket, a few drops of water still dripping from it. “Get up, mutt. I’ll be up at the top of the stairs to let you out. Just bang on the door or whatever. Be quick.” Izuku nodded shakily, entire body shivering. The man left and just as soon as he did, Izuku scrambled out of bed, water droplets flinging from his hair, and grabbed the  _ door _ , slamming it shut, at the same time lifting his foot and slamming it to the floor to mimic the sound of an actual door slamming. He panted.

Mr. Midoriya  _ never _ comes into his room. His heart pounded but air was hard to suck in through freezing lungs. Chip rubbed against his leg, also drenched.

“Y- y- yeah,” he stuttered through chattering teeth. “G- good m- m- morning.” He grabbed his thin blanket, pillow, and bed sheet, taking them with him to the  _ bathroom _ where he rung them out in the sink and exited to hang them over the pull-up bars, the pillow thin enough to hang over it as well. After that he returned again to the bathroom to get dressed, drying his hair with the towel before tossing it down to Chip to dry off too. Izuku got dressed all fancied up in his UA uniform and turned to the mirror. Beside the sink was a chipped bowl and in it was his earrings. Real, not lost ones. Serena and Hitoshi got them for him. 

He was up to eight now, seven if you count the bar he had in his right ear. In his left ear he had one in his ear lobe and two at the top of his ear. In his right ear he had one in his ear lobe, three at the top with the first and third having a bar in between with a regular stud between that for the second top right piercing. The eighth piercing and probably the most painful one he gave himself, and the one that almost blinded him from infection because he wasn’t doing these in the most sanitary way, was the one through his right eyebrow at the outer edge. The upper ear ones were all spike-like aside from the bar. The other’s in his ears were just black studs and the eyebrow one was a hoop.

After doing his own earrings, Izuku crouched and helped Chip with his which consisted of two hoops in the top of his left ear in one nearer to the bottom of his right ear where one would imagine a pokemon to have a piercing if that were, you know, normal.

At one point, Izuku had considered putting one through his bottom lip but ultimately decided against it. After the near failed attempt with his eyebrow, he decided to stick with ears for now. Not that he didn’t like the one in his eyebrow because he did. He liked all of his piercings.

They were different.

They changed him from Midoriya to Izuku. Wait. No. That’s not right because how could he change himself from something he never was? Izuku was always Izuku, never Midoriya.

Different. Okay. Different is okay. Different is  _ right _ . Izuku is different. Izuku is  _ okay _ .

Lastly, Izuku reached up and pulled half of his hair up tight in his half-ponytail style. The green curls that still hung beneath it now reached his shoulders, some of the curls smoothed out from the weight of his overgrown locks. Even his ponytail that used to be very short like a samurai was starting to look more like a ponytail. He would have loved to see himself with his glasses on but those were hidden away in his backpack as well as some other articles of clothing because you didn’t really think he was going to look this uptight did you? He just couldn’t let Mr. Midoriya see.

His old, yellow backpack was only slung over one shoulder as the right shoulder strap had snapped long ago.

Speaking of which, Izuku and Chip, acutely skipping breakfast like always because those protein bars had to last until next month when he could steal again without feeling  _ too _ guilty about it, ran to their  _ bedroom _ and grabbed his bag from beside his bed, already prepacked. They ran to the bottom of the stairs, not forgetting to close the  _ door _ , and paused at the bottom to put on his shoes: a pair of ratty, old red hightops, because of course you have to take off your shoes when you enter your house, right? RiGhT?

The right one was missing it’s laces, the left laces were thin and looked ready to snap. Both of the heels and pads of where his toes connected to the foot were so worn thin there wasn’t much left on the bottom, he could actually feel the air through the worn fibers on the bottom of his feet. His left one had an actual hole that his big toe could be seen through.

Not the best but what can you do?

Izuku calls Chip back to his pokeball and pockets it before climbing the stairs. He takes a deep breath before banging on the metal. There is the sound of shuffling and the sliding of the weight box before it opens. It isn’t too bad, the light that is, as it is probably around 2, 2:30, in the morning and Mr. Midoriya has the lights off up here. The man in question glares down at him, jerking his head. “Come on.” He is led to the front door. On the way, Izuku glances into the kitchen at the oven clock.

_ Ah, 2:47, okay then. Guess I better hurry. _

He was pushed out when Mr. Midoriya opened the door. “What are you going to do today?” The greenette swallows, head down. “Go to UA,” he replies. 

“And?” 

“Make a good name.” 

“After?”

“Come straight back.”

Mr. Midoriya nodded. “And what  _ won’t  _ you be doing today?”

“Skipping.”

“And?”

“I won’t tell anyone…”

“Why not?”

Izuku grit his teeth. “Because if I do…”

“I’ll kill each and every one of your precious friends,” Mr. Midoriya finished for him. Izuku’s heart pounded. He  _ couldn’t _ let that happen. He’d rather die himself. But, oh, he can’t kill himself either because if he does it will just be the same result. He knows it. Why?

Because Izuku has tried before.

\-----

_ ‘What are these?’ Mr. Midoriya growls, holding Izuku up by his bleeding wrist. He had come in for a surprise attack while the boy was trying to bleed himself out. The boy struggles, crying out in pain as the man’s hand heats up. ‘What do you think they will say if you kill yourself?’ _

_ Izuku screamed as the burning got worse. Soon, it was unbearable. _

_ Mr. Midoriya cauterized the cuts, dropping Izuku to the ground. He scowled at the heaving boy. _

_ ‘If you try that again, it won’t just be your life that ends. Consider your mother’s gone too.’ _

\-----

Izuku never tried again.

That doesn’t mean he doesn’t want to… He supposes that things aren’t  _ too _ bad right now though. After all, he made it into UA Trainer’s Academy and he still has Shouta. But for how long? How long until Shouta realizes just how weak Izuku truly is? How long until he decides he is a lost cause like everyone else did? How long until he abandons Izuku?

_ How long until Shouta lies? _

Izuku shakes his head as he runs, rushing to make it to the bus stop in time.  _ Run a little bit to the right _ , he reminds himself. Better to not hit that tree again. He’s memorized its position by now. He hasn’t put on his glasses yet, not sure if Mr. Midoriya is stalking him again or not. The boy comes to a halt right as the bus is pulling up. He pants exaggeratedly beside it, hands on his knees.

“Geeze, kid, you don’t need to rush,” the bus driver says, opening the door. “That man paid me extra to come at this hour and pick you up anyway so I won’t leave without you.” Izuku blinked, looking up at the bus driver. “H- he… what?” The man shrugged. “You think we really make rounds at three in the morning? Now hurry up.” Izuku’s heart felt warm as he climbed on the bus with a quiet: “Thank you.”

How could he have ever doubted Shouta?

Once the bus was far enough away, Izuku swung his bag around to get out his clothing. Sure, he could be sleeping but he’d sleep on the two hour trip from Aquacorde Town to Lumiose City. For now though…

He grinned as he pulled out a black belt, three silver chains, and a black, long-sleeved shirt. Screw authorities making them wear uniforms. Adults can shove it. Except Shouta and Nurse Hope. They aren’t too bad, not that Izuku’d ever admit that. He slid the black belt on and attached the smaller chain to his green UA slacks like always. Izuku shed the blazer completely. It wasn’t  _ too _ bad, just not really his style. He also shed the red tie because, one, it was stupid, and two, he didn’t know how to tie a tie and it looked terrible either way. Izuku peeled off his white button up and slid on the black shirt before putting back on the white button-up though he left it unbuttoned because screw buttoning up. What is he, some businessman? Izuku slid on the chain necklace after that and packed up everything. Izuku let Chip out of his pokeball.

“Eevee!”

The greenette grinned and held up the final chain which Chip wiggled onto his head and around his neck. Finally,  _ finally _ , Izuku pulled out his glasses. His eyes sparkled at just the blurry view of them. Sliding them on, Izuku looked at his clear reflection in the window of the bus. He… looked so cool! The glasses actually really fit his style! Nerdy bad boy actually works! He grinned, standing in the aisle and looking himself up and down.

He was doing it… Izuku is going to UA!

And then the bus hit a bump in the road and he promptly fell over. Best to keep seated whilst riding the bus.

Izuku did end up taking a nap for about fifteen minutes but waking up after such a short sleep, and considering his meager sleep that he got at home, Izuku was absolutely exhausted when he boarded the subway at Aquacorde Town. Despite this, he didn’t fall asleep. There was two other people on the train, for what he didn’t know and he didn’t care. Especially since they were both adults and more because they were both adults that he most certainly  _ did not _ fall asleep. No, he forced his eyes open and let Chip rest instead. By the time he got off the subway, the sun had just barely begun to rise. It would start rising later though as Fall moved in to take over Summer. Izuku’s eyes adjusted much better to the gradual lightening than to BAM THERE’S THE SUN.

* **yaaaaaawn** *

“Someone is tired,” Izuku looked up as he was walking up to the gates of UA to the voice of his mentor. “Shut up,” he grumbled. Though brash, Izuku couldn’t help but feel a bit happy. Shouta kept his promise. He was there when Izuku came. The man reached up and ruffled his hair. “Let’s go in.”

The halls of UA were so much more expansive than he remembered them to be. It truly was a prestigious high school. “So what’s with the get up?” Shouta asked as they climbed the stairs to the fourth floor where the teacher’s lounge was. Izuku raised an eyebrow. The man gestured to his improved version of the uniform. “You know you are required to wear the uniform, correct?” Izuku scowled. “I’m wearing it,” he huffed. “To some degree, yes,” the man agreed. “The blazer is optional and undershirts are permitted but you should be wearing your tie and have your white shirt buttoned up.”

“Screw that,”

“Izuku-”

“I’m not going to wear some comforatory uniform some bullheaded adult made up so all of his _precious little puppies_ can stand in line perfectly the way he wants them to,” Izuku snapped. Shouta blinked, stunned. Izuku mentally cursed at himself, lowering his head. “Sorry…” He flinched harshly when Shouta’s hand found his shoulder. Izuku was still shaken up from this morning. He could feel the man’s black eyes look at him with pity. Shouta didn’t say anything, but he kept that contact all the way until they reached the teacher’s lounge. The Hobo opened the door.

“Shouta’s back!” Izuku looked up and he was met with the faces of about four teachers, all pro hero’s in costume, sitting at their desks but looking in their direction. His skin prickles. “Ah, Shouta, is this the kid?” His eye twitched. Had Shouta been talking about him? Two figures, a man and a woman, walked up. Izuku somewhat recognized them as pro heroes Midnight and Present Mic. Shouta guided him in. “Yeah. Izuku,” he turned and gestured to them, “these are my friends and co-workers, Kayama Nemuri,” Midnight, “and Yamada  **Hizashi** .”

Izuku’s mind went blank.

_ Hisashi… Hizashi… HISASHI. _

“Hey, little list-!” Izuku spun around and sprinted out of the door with Chip. He heard Shouta curse from behind him but all sounds were soon drowned out by his own thundering heart. He couldn’t do this. This couldn’t be real! He wasn’t supposed to be here! This is supposed to be a good place! Izuku took a sharp corner. He could hear yelling from behind him.

_ He’s coming! Get away! _

In a lapse of judgement, he swung open the nearest door and ran in with Chip only to find an empty classroom and they were trapped.

“Kid!”

The two spun around and met black eyes.

\-----

_ ‘HiZaShI.’ _

\-----

Izuku did the only thing he knew how to do. He fell to his knees and begged.

____________________________

“Now look what you did, Hizashi,” Nemuri swatted the yellow-haired man upside the head and that was when it clicked. Shouta didn’t think about it when he first said his friend’s name but hearing it aloud by word of another person? He could hear just how similar it sounded to Mr. Midoriya’s first name. His heart plummeted. “I got to go!”

Shouta all but threw himself out of the teacher’s lounge. He needed to find Izuku.  _ Now _ .

It hurt. He had hoped that the kid would be able to get along with his best friends even though Shouta knew it was a long shot as they were both adults. Hizashi started off as he does with all untrusting children, being cheerful and bouncy to lighten the mood. It  _ usually  _ works. That is, when the man does not happen to have the name of the child’s abuser.

Shouta just caught sight of Izuku turning a corner. “Kid!” he called out, hot on the greenette’s tail. No response, of course. Shouta rounded the same corner, hearing the sound of a classroom door slam open. He slid into the doorway. “Kid!” he called again. Izuku and Chip froze. They turned around slowly. Shouta could pinpoint the exact moment Izuku met his eyes and did not see Aizawa Shouta and instead Midoriya  _ Hisashi _ . He took a step forward and Izuku crumpled to the ground.

“PLEASE!” Shouta jumped at the scream. Izuku was on his knees, forehead pressed to the floor. “I’ll do anything!” “H- hey,” Shouta took another step forward, hands out. “PLeAsE!” Izuku cried again. “JUST DON’T HURT THEM!!!”

Shouta froze.  _ What…? _

\-----

_ ‘‘You have a sister?’ _

_ Midoriya nodded.  _

_ ‘Is she okay?’ he asks hesitantly. _

_ The greenette chuckled dryly. ‘Of course.’ He paused before adding darkly. ‘As long as I’m there…’ _

\-----

Of course… _Of_ _course_ Mr. Midoriya would be blackmailing the kid. Dang it! 

He snapped out of it when Izuku jolted suddenly. Shouta needed to calm him down quickly or the boy would have a spasm at this rate. He didn’t know what else to do without touching him so Shouta took off his capture weapon and tossed it over the boy’s head. Izuku jumped, looking up causing it to slide over him and rest on his shoulders. Tears were streaming down his confused face. Finally, he seemed to recognize Shouta after a second and then… he freaked out.

He freaked out because he had a freaking panic attack in front of the man and apparently those weren’t allowed either. Seriously, screw Mr. Midoriya.

Izuku and Chip scrambled back as fast as possible until they hit the teacher’s desk and pinned themselves against it. Izuku’s right arm had already begun to jerk. It was only a matter of time with the way his ragged breathing was furthering the misfiring in his brain. Shouta sat on the floor… and waited. He didn’t say anything because it would make things worse. So he waited for either a spasm to occur or for Izuku to calm himself and realize there was no threat before it did occur.

And he did. Though his breathing was still all over the place and Chip was probably suffocating in his hold, Izuku’s twitching came to a halt everywhere aside from his right hand. Shouta took a leap of faith and stood up, the two shaking beings flinching at his every move. He slowly, cautiously made his way to them and crouched down. Silently, Shouta opened his arms.

Izuku shook his head, tears flying. “Y- your g- g- going to t- tell!” he cried and oh how it broke Shouta’s heart to see the confident boy break down like this. Shouta hummed. “I will only tell the counselor about a panic attack because that is something that needs to be addressed by the counselor. Anything else can’t really be used.” As evidence, that is. Izuku grit his teeth. It was obvious he didn’t know the correct way to calm a panic attack because he was using that as a way to calm himself but also cutting off smoother air flow. Chip glared at Shouta from behind the boy’s knees. Shouta didn’t back down. “I promise there are no strings attached to this, no secret cameras-” err, besides the ones in the building already, “- and no recording devices.” Shouta should really look into getting one of those. 

It hurt his heart when Izuku looked at him with such skepticism. Shouta had already accepted the fact that he thought of Izuku as a son. The only thing is, Izuku didn’t know the difference between ‘Father’ and ‘Abuser’. He supposes he will just have to show him what a true father is like.

“Have I ever lied to you?” Shouta pressed. Izuku flinched. Yes, the raven-haired man knew exactly how angry the greenette was at adults specifically because he viewed them all as liars. As such, he knew this was a button he was pressing but that it needed to be pressed. “I will never, never ever, purposefully do something to harm you or hurt you in any way, shape, or form. Please,” he allowed himself a little bit of audible desperation, “just let me help.”

Viridian and rainbow eyes lingered on him for a moment more before Izuku hesitantly uncurled himself from his cocoon and crawled over to Shouta. Shouta waited until he felt Izuku put his own weight against him to wrap his arms around the boy and his Eevee. He fell back on his rear and pulled them close. Izuku… cried. It broke Shouta’s heart.

“I’m sorry,” he said softly. “I forgot they had similar names. I promise H- Yamada isn’t like him.” The greenette buried his face in Shouta’s jumpsuit. “I- I- I don’t-  _ Lies _ .” Shouta pursed his lips. Ah, the shattered soul. Shifting a bit, Shouta got them in a carrying position and stood. “They aren’t lies, Izuku,” he firmly stated. “I hope that you can give them a chance. They mean a lot to me.” Izuku flinched. It was a low blow, Shouta knows it, but he has always opted for the truth with Izuku. He walked them back to the teacher’s lounge, sliding open the door with his foot, and entering. Hizashi and Nemuri were both now at their desks. They cast him concerned glances only to ear glares from the boy in his arms. Shouta settled on the couch, still not letting go.

“You have about thirty minutes before you absolutely have to be in your seat when class starts,” he said. “Take a nap or something.” Izuku shook his head. “I won’t leave you,” Shouta said quieter. Bloodshot eyes glanced up at him with something akin to awe. That shouldn’t be such a startling statement… Nevertheless, Izuku leaned his head against the man’s chest and before he knew it, Shouta could hear the tale-tale gentle breathing of a sleeping person.

* **Ding Ding** *

Shouta opened his phone.

**Hizashi** :

Sorry.

**Shouta** :

Don’t be. I’ll explain it later.

  
  


He set down his phone in exchange for running his fingers through Izuku’s hair. And here he thought that maybe the three most important people in his life could get along. Well, aside from his mother. He wonders how Izuku would react to her.

____________________________

Izuku feet pounded on the ground as he sprinted to class.

Dang it. If it wasn’t embarrassing enough to fall asleep in the teacher’s lounge in Shouta’s arms like some baby the man also woke him up like three minutes to the bell and Izuku only had a brief description of where the classroom is to get there on time. He and Chip slid right past Class 1-A’s door, coming to a stop with arms pinwheeling before turning around and running up to it. A minute to spare. Izuku took a deep breath, put on his best, most confident smirk, and opened the door.

“-feet off the desk!” A tall, blue-haired boy was karate chopping at… Bakugou. Of course. The blonde had his feet propped up on the desk. “It is quite disrespectful to our seniors who sat there before you.” The blonde rolled his eyes. “Screw off, four eyes.”

“Izuku,” the greenette pulled his eyes away from the scene to the left. Hitoshi raised his hand. “Yo.” Izuku grinned, slapping his own against his friends. “Yo.” Hitoshi led him to his seat which was, oh lovely, right behind Bakugou’s. At least Hitoshi’s was behind his own. Izuku promptly stepped onto his chair and sat on top of his desk, turning to have one leg off the desk, propping the other on the desk to lean his shoulder on it while Hitoshi sat in his seat normally but torso draped across the desk. Mr. Roboto all but swooned, storming over to Izuku.

“You, sir! What on earth do you think you are doing?” Izuku narrowed his eyes at him. “That desk was used by your seniors! And what is this disrespectful way you are wearing your uniform? You should don-”

“Blah blah blah!” Izuku held up his hand. “Won’t you shut up? Do you really think that I care enough to listen to you? You present yourself so hoity toity like some big shot. If you were that smart then you would realize that your stupid reprimadations don’t mean jack to us.” Referring to both him and Bakugou. Roboto recoiled in shock. The whole class was staring now. “Why I nev-” 

“Ah!” They looked over at a black-haired boy with tan skin. “Izuku?!” The greenette blinked before his jaw dropped. “Ash?!” The Kanto boy ran over, swinging his arm around Izuku’s shoulders. “I- What are you doing here?” Izuku asked, mimicking the gesture. Ash laughed loudly. “I transferred from Kanto.” “No way!”

He had been sending letters back and forth to Ash for years since Professor Oak’s Pokemon Summer Camp back when they were five.

“Eeeeeeeek!” Everyone looked over to the front of the class where a brown-haired girl and a frog-like girl were staring at the floor in shock. The class watched as a yellow sleeping bag wobbled upward from the floor. Black eyes met viridian.  _ Seriously? _ Shouta unzipped himself and walked in. “That took you a whole thirteen seconds to quiet down,” the man grumbled, throwing the sleeping bag under the teacher’s desk. “I expect that to be down to zero by the end of this year.”  _ Wait. Is- _ “I am Aizawa Shouta, your homeroom teacher.” Izuku’s eyes widened. Shouta is his homeroom teacher! “Put these on,” the Hobo held up packaged UA gym uniforms, “and meet me out behind the school. There is one under each of your seats.” With that Shouta left.

It didn’t register until he entered the boy’s locker room that he would be changing in front of people. Izuku froze. A hand grabbed his arm. “Hey, this way,” Izuku looked over to see Todoroki. The boy pulled him to the back where there was a small doorway and a wall separating the showers from the changing room. “You-” “I figured,” Todoroki said quietly, letting go of his arm,” you, too, had some scars you didn’t want to show…” Izuku looked down. “Are you also…?” Todoroki nodded. “Yeah.” “Thank you.” “Don’t mention it.”

They got dressed in individual showers before coming out and joining the rest of the class outside. He lined up beside Hitoshi and Ash, Todoroki lingering a bit behind him.

Shouta waved everyone over. “Well, that took you all approximately 13 minutes. We’ll have that down to five by the end of this year as well.”  _ Dang, he’s worse than Mr. Roboto. _ “Today we will be doing a power apprehension test. You all took physical exams in your previous years but you were not allowed to use your quirks and your pokemon were not participating in it. Today you will be using both. You and your pokemon are training to be heroes together, not heroes and sidekicks. That is the first thing you need to realize.”

“Aizawa-sensei,” brown-haired girl raised her hand, “what about the entrance ceremony?” Shouta hummed. “Teachers at UA have free reign however they choose to run their class. That means even skipping irrationally long ceremonies.” A red-haired boy mumbled. “That’s a bit unfair.”

“ _ Unfair _ ,” Shouta glared. “Do you think that life is fair? Natural disasters? Civilians in the line of attack of villains? Is that fair?” “Wha- No, I-” “ ”Let me show you what  _ fair _ means. The person to place last in this test will be permanently expelled from UA.” The class exploded in shocked yells. Izuku, Hitoshi, and Shouta all met eyes.  _ Right. Even us. Shouta won’t play favorites. _ He turns his eyes away. Right now, close outside of school or not, Shouta is his teacher.

All teachers are  _ liars _ .

It started off simple with a ball-throwing test where the only rules were to not leave the circle. The brown-haired girl, Uraraka apparently, let out her pokemon, a small little creature clinging to a flower. A Floette. She held up the ball in front f the Floette and when Uraraka let it go, it floated in the air. Stepping back, she threw her arm out. “Floette, fairy wind!” In a gust of sparkling wind, the pokemon spun around and released the attack to the ball which went flying. They waited. And waited. And waited. * **beep** **beep** * Aizawa turned a small device to them.

…

…

…

“INFINITY?!”

Well, great. How are he and Chip supposed to beat that? They have to save their evolutions for other trials. So, in the end, when he went up Izuku just threw it. It was better than the average throw as he has been training his whole life but still not overwhelmingly good as he is malnourished as heck. Next was the 50 meter run. This time, he decided to show off a little something-something.

He lined up next to Bakugou and his Quilava. The blonde scowled. “I’m going to leave you in the dust.” Izuku promptly ignored him. “Ready,” Shoua raised his hand. “Chip, Jolteon.” “Go.” * **BOOM** * Bakugou took off, using his explosions to propel him but at the same time, Izuku and Chip lit up. The students gasped as Chip evolved and Izuku’s hair and eyes turned yellow. Mid-evolution was always their fastest time so he kicked off when it started. 

In a blur of lightning and evolutionary light, Izuku and Chip flashed past Bakugou and Quilava, glowing in their indignant squawks. They came to a halt just past the line. The dust they kicked up settled around them and the light ending the evolution died down leaving a yellow-haired and eyed boy, with his hair more spikey than curly, and a Jolteon in place of the normal Izuku and Chip. “Deku!” Bakugou growled, just finishing. Izuku smirked at him. “What, I thought you were going to leave me in the dust?”

“Move out,” Aizawa commanded. “We have more to do.”

“Woah! That was so manly!” the redhead from earlier shouted. “Did you plan that?!” Izuku came back to stand beside Ash and Hitoshi. “Smooth, Izuku, real smooth,” Hitoshi murmured. “Of course he didn’t,” Roboto spoke up. “One cannot simply evolve on command like that.” The rest of the class nodded their agreement.

“But he changed too?”

“Is that his quirk?”

“Does that even count then?”

Izuku huffed. Oh, if only they knew. He decided to keep this form for the majority of the trials but kept a mental timer to remind himself to release it. A few came by and congratulated Chip on evolving. Izuku couldn’t wait until they shifted back. Well, until the grip strength test came. “Chip, Leafeon.”

When Izuku says his ears bled by the screams the class let out when Chip and him changed again, he is only just barely exaggerating. They didn’t bleed but they were pretty darn close. He and Chip combined their vines for the test. Izuku fiddled with the leaves that had grown up his arms as they were waiting for everyone else to finish. They were a tad uncomfortable. He could feel the side glances from everyone wanting to ask but trying to be respectful. Ash a little less so.

“That was so cool!” the boy exclaimed. “How did you do that?” Izuku shrugged. “Is it your quirk?” He looked up at the boy with narrowed eyes. “Seriously?” Ash blinked before hitting his fist to his hand. “Right! I forgot you didn’t have an element!” Izuku’s skin prickled. “Or a quirk, right?” Almost immediately, the eyes of his classmates turned cold, skeptical, unbelieving. A few started to question if he was cheating. Ash was none the wiser, stepping up for his and Pikachu’s own test.

“Calm down,” Hitoshi warned. Izuku blinked. He hadn’t even realized his right hand was twitching.

“ **He isn’t cheating.** ” Izuku looked over at Todoroki in shock. “It isn’t a fluke either. After all, I saw him at the recommendation exams.” Everyone’s eyes widened. Oh? So now it’s okay knowing he got in through recommendations? Is there anyone in this world not a freaking hypocrite?

As soon as the trials were over, no, even before that, Izuku and Chip were forced to drop their forms back to normal in order not to risk a spasm. Aizawa held up a hologram of the results. A boy named Tesla was at the bottom. A boy with short but puffy brown hair and eyebrows let out a sigh.

“No one is being expelled,” Izuku narrowed his eyes at Aizawa’s words. “It was a logical ruse.” Tesla whooped. “I won’t let you down, yo!” As they turned to leave and go back inside, Izuku was tuning out everyone crowding him, instead looking past the crowd at Shouta. The man looked up from shutting off the hologram and met his eyes. Something dark swirled in Izuku’s heart. He turned away with the group that had gathered around him and walked away.

“Midoriya,” Aizawa called out.  _ MiDoRiya _ . The greenette glared over his shoulder.

\-----

_ ‘The person to place last in this test will be permanently expelled from UA’ _

_ ‘No one is being expelled.’ _

\-----

Shouta  _ lied. _

____________________________

Shouta mentally cursed. He always pulls the expulsion trick in these and sometimes even does expel kids. Everyone in this class had some potential though so he couldn’t just expel them. But of course he’d have to change his words in Izuku’s eyes, well, that wasn’t a good thing. Especially when he called the boy ‘Midoriya’ but he couldn’t very well call him Izuku in class.

Shouta sighed, following his class. He’d have hell to repair with the kid after this.

____________________________

Izuku couldn’t stand this. All day everyone was calling him that stupid name. ‘Midoriya’ this and ‘Midoriya’ that and he had to go along with it because he didn’t have a good reason not to.

“Midoriya!” Uraraka waved him over when the lunch bell rang. “Let’s eat together,” she chirped. Izuku hummed.  _ Should I? _ He didn’t really care for fakes. Izuku glanced over at Hitoshi who was just standing and then to the back to the class where Todoroki sat. “Sorry, Uraraka,” he replied, “I’ve already promised to sit with Todoroki and the guys.” She looked a bit downtrodden but Izuku ignored that. He wandered over to the bi-colored boy, planting his hands on Todoroki’s desk and sliding on to sit on it. Todoroki looked up. “What are you doing?”

“Avoiding the gnats,” he responds. It seems to appease the boy. Ash and Hitoshi end up joining them for lunch as well and they all make their way to the lunchroom. “Are you not eating?” Ash asks as they sit. Izuku shrugs. “Not hungry.” A lie. He is starving but then again, when is he not? He’s gotten used to the feeling of an empty stomach by now. However, as Ash catches him up on Kanto news, Izuku feels Todoroki kick his foot under the table. Bi-colored eyes flicker down to the table. Izuku’s own viridian follows them down to the lid of Todoroki’s bento that how holds a bit of fried chicken and rice on it the boy had slid over. Izuku slowly looks up but Todoroki wasn’t looking at him anymore. Izuku took the blessings as they came.

Those in the dark look after one another.

By the end of the first day of school Izuku’s eyes hurt from glaring at all of the teachers so much, especially Present Mic, and he felt ready to explode. He needed to get out of here before one more person had the chance to call him by that wretched name.

He b-lined to the bathrooms as soon as the bell rang and all but collapsed in a stall. He didn’t know it would be this bad. In Vaniville no one spoke to him anyway so he hardly heard it. School sucks! Izuku sat, digging his fingers into his hair.

“It’s okay,” he whispers. “It’s okay, it’s okay, it’s okay. Izuku is okay. Izuku is not Midoriya. Izuku is okay. It’s okay, it’s okay, it’s okay.”

____________________________

“Izuku?” Shouta looked up at Hitoshi’s call but the greenette had already fled the room. He purses his lips. He knew this wasn’t going to be an easy transition for the kid. Throughout the day he had seen Izuku only a few times as he wasn’t in the classroom all of the time because they had other classes but every time he did see the greenette his face was only more strained than the last, a facade struggling to keep up.

Shouta waved Hitoshi and went off to find the boy in question. He did by almost running into the boy as he was leaving the bathroom. “Izuku,” he started only to drop off when the greenette glared up at him.

“ _ You lied _ .”

The raven-haired man took a deep breath. “Yes, I did,” he agreed. “For good cause.” Izuku scoffed, brushing past him. Shouta spun around and grabbed his arm. “Let go,” Izuku ordered. “No. I won’t until you at least hear me out,” Shouta refuted. “Those who care about one another listen to one another.” Anger flared in those green eyes. “ _ Oh? _ And how do I know all of that ‘care’ was not just another lie, huh?” “Iz-” “How long have you been drawing me on? Did you do it on purpose? Was it  _ fun _ ?”

“I could say the same,” Shouta snipped. Izuku narrowed his eyes. “ _ What? _ ” Shouta nodded. “If you can turn on me this easily how do I know that anything you did around me was real either?” Viridian eyes widened. “Trust goes two ways, Izuku. Let’s talk.”

When the boy relented, Shouta guided him to the teacher’s lounge once more. He looked over his shoulder though and waved off Hitoshi and Ketchum who were hovering nearby worriedly. He gave them the ‘okay’ sign with his fingers.

Izuku slouched on the couch in the teacher’s lounge, Shouta sitting across from him. “Can I speak?” he asked. Izuku rolled his eyes. “Hell if I care.” Shouta suppressed a sigh. “I ‘lied’ because it was necessary,” he began. “I do this every year to create a sense of urgency in the students to do their best.”

“Rule by fear,” Izuku stated.

“No.” Shouta dragged a hand across his face. “Just, it’s not like that. It is like how heroes will sometimes lie to villains to get them to lower their guard or something. I would never lie to you or your classmates without good reason.” Izuku crossed his arms. “Oh? So have you had a good reason before?” Shouta tapped his chin. “Not really. I don’t think I’ve lied to you ever.” Izuku hummed, looking down. Shouta continued. “Have you lied to me?”

…

…

…

Oh, yeah, there was a lot packed into that question. Of course Izuku had. He has been lying for over two years now to keep Shouta from knowing what was happening at home. Maybe with this prompt he would actually- * **drip** * Shouta’s eyes directed to Izuku’s left wrist. * **drip** * His right hand’s fingernails were digging into it so hard it was bleeding. Shouta lurched forward. Izuku flinched when his hands were suddenly covered. “Izuku, stop,” Shouta urged. He felt the hands struggle against his own to continue harming himself. “I’m sorry for asking just please,” Shouta let go with one and brought it to the back of the boy’s head, guiding Izuku’s head to his shoulder, “please stop,” he whispered. The hands froze.

* **drip** *

* **drip** *

* **drip** *

“It’s okay,” Izuku finally whispered. “Sorry for getting mad. It’s okay.” Shouta let out a shaky breath. Geeze. This kid would be the death of him. He held the contact for a bit longer before standing to get the first aid kit. “I am going to have to call you by-” Shouta bit his lip, “- by  _ his _ last name in class.” He settled back by Izuku to patch up the kid’s wrist. “You understand, right?” Izuku nodded stiffly. Shouta finished the wrapping. “Okay… You get going before you miss your bus.” Izuku nodded, standing. By the teacher’s lounge door, Izuku looked over his shoulder at him.

“Shouta,” his voice was so small, “it’s okay, right?”

Shout blinked.  _ What? _ There could be so many different things implied there. Black eyes searched green. His wrist? School? The lying? What is it? In his pause, Izuku began to twitch again slightly. He was  _ waiting _ . Shouta felt something he has never felt from the boy before. A gut instinct he felt when he first felt the kid and came to the conclusion that he was being abused. His gut instinct was telling him that if he did not answer this question correctly something bad would be the result. So he mimicked the boy’s confidence and nodded.

“Of course.”

And just like that, the dark air around Izuku disappeared. He nodded and left with a smirk. 

____________________________

School was better after that, Izuku thinks. Or, at least, more manageable. After all, Shouta is at school and Shouta is okay and Shouta said it’s okay so things must be okay so school is okay.

Everything is okay.

He gets to school an hour early as always but after the first day he didn’t take naps in the teacher’s lounge because that was stupid of him. It’s unsafe to sleep in a room full of adults. So instead he sits and draws. On the way back home he leaves at the same time as Hitoshi and they ride together. Ash is there too! How cool! The three, plus Todoroki on some occasions, are almost always together. Bakugou is also on the train and bus but Izuku promptly chooses to ignore him. He has gotten used to slightly dissociating when people call him ‘Midoriya.’ Not the healthiest but better than getting turnt about it. He still got home around seven and got his, ahem, nightly training but that was  _ okay _ . Everything is  _ okay _ . Just like Shouta says!

Izuku hums as he draws. A week into school and he is not completely hating it. He hasn’t skipped a day yet if that is any distinction to his liking of it. For now.

“Oh?” Izuku jumped, looking up at the sound of a woman’s voice. Midnight was leaning over the back of the couch. He glared and shut his sketchbook. The woman just smiled. “You have quite the talent for clothes, now don’t you, boy?” He wasn’t meaning to respond but it was about fashion and… “What about it?” She nodded. “I’ve got a show for you.” Pulling her phone out of who knows where with that sort of costume, she opened it and pulled up WeTube. “Why would I watch anything that you suggest?” he snarks. “Why wouldn’t you?” she snarks back. “It’s not like it will hurt you or anything and if you don’t like it you can just turn it off.” Izuku huffed as the phone was set on his sketchbook, the video starting.

Izuku liked it.

____________________________

Shouta looked up from his desk computer when he heard Nemuri approach Izuku. They were talking? Like, having an actual conversation? Like, Izuku is actively participating in a conversation with another adult? Wow. Hizashi now tiptoes around the boy. He has tried to talk with Izuku once or twice with no luck. It either ends with Izuku running away and Shouta having to calm him or just be in complete denial the man even exists. Safe to say, Izuku isn’t responding to Shouta’s friends as much as he hoped so he has to wonder what Nemuri said to get Izuku to actually respond. 

He stands quietly and rounds the bend, gently placing his hand on Nemuri’s shoulder to alert her of his presence. She grinned up at him and nodded her head to the video she put on for Izuku. “That there,” she points to the screen, “is called a ‘sweetheart neckline.’” Ah, fashion. Of course he’d speak about that.

The show was Bridal Dressings. It was where brides go in and try on different wedding dresses and some episodes show them going in for alterations and fittings. On a select few episodes it would actually show them designing them. It was the perfect show for Izuku.

“You can have that for a bit,” Nemuri said before walking away. Shouta followed her to her desk. “Thank you,” he whispered. She winked over her shoulder. “Don’t worry about it, Sho. He’s hateful, sure, but that doesn’t make him completely unapproachable. To some degree, at least, he does like company. If he didn’t then he wouldn’t have friends. I don’t know what happened to him to make him this angry but I’d like to join your battle to help him. That is, if you will let me.” Shouta smirked. “If you feel up to it. Don’t expect him to be an easy customer.”

“I want to help too…” Hizashi pouted from the desk over. “Why does his dad’s name have to be Hisashi?” He crossed his arms. “I don’t know,” Shouta looked over at Izuku who had flipped open his sketchbook to draw one of the dresses on the show, “but what I do know it that when I get enough evidence, that man is going to wish he wasn’t alive.”

“You are scary sometimes, Shouta.”

____________________________

Izuku leaned back in his seat, feet on the table. “You tryin’ ta copy me, flunky?” Bakugou smirks. “Sorry, I don’t talk to people who eat dust,” Izuku closed his eyes. Bakugou growled, opening his mouth to say something.

* **thud** * * **thud** * * **thud** * * **thud** * * **thud** *

Everyone turned their heads to the classroom door just as- * **BAM** * -it slammed open.

“ **I AM COMING THROUGH THE DOOR LIKE A NORMAL PERSON!** * Everyone gasped as the number one pro hero All Might marched into the class and turned to them. “ **HELLO STUDENTS OF UA’S TRAINER’S COURSE!** ” Izuku scowled, covering his ears.  _ Why does he have to be so loud? Adults and their pompous egos…  _ Despite his misgivings, Izuku had to admit he was a bit excited about the heroes arrival. He still had the single solitary poster in his  _ room _ of All Might. It was torn down the middle in the midst of a fit of rage and then crudely taped back together and had a few blood stains on it and faded with time but it was there, one of the few things from his disaster of a childhood he was allowed to keep. 

“TODAY WE WILL BE DOING A BATTLE EXERCISE,” he was loud still but after the greeting was a bit more mellow. “FOR THAT YOU WILL OF COURSE NEED THESE!” All MIght pointed a button at the back wall and pressed it. It rumbled before sliding down to reveal twenty silver cases. “YOUR HERO COSTUMES! PUT THESE ON AND MEET ME AT GROUND BETA. BUT REMEMBER, STUDENTS, WHEN YOU DON THESE COSTUMES YOU ARE NO LONGER CIVILIANS,” All Might grinned, a glint in his eyes, “YOU ARE HEROES.”

Excitement bubbled in Izuku’s chest.  _ Heroes… _ He turned around in his seat to Hitoshi. “This is going to be great.” Hitoshi nodded. “I couldn’t agree more.”

Izuku carefully removed all of his earrings while changing and slipped into his suit. It was exactly how he imagined it to be. He hopes it will work with their transformations. Speaking of which, Izuku knelt down and helped Chip into his own. This was going to be so cool!

Someone whistled when he came out. “That’s a whole new look for you, man,” Kirishima commented. Izuku hummed but he noticed everyone was sort of averting their eyes. Hitoshi wandered over to him. “Hey, are you okay?” he whispered. Izuku blinked. “Yes? Why?” The purple-haired boy gestured vaguely to his exposed arms and legs. Izuku looked down and-

Oh.

OH.

He didn’t take in account that his scars would be showing… His arms and legs were laced with scars ranging from the tiniest of cuts to the size of a ruler almost. Some of his skin was uneven from poorly treated burns and just peeking out from under his right sleeve was a yellowish-purple bruise. He instantly moved to cover them up with one arm only to flash the scars on the others. Izuku stumbled back, air getting suddenly thinner.

“Hey, man,” Kirishima waved him, “don’t worry about it. They are kinda manly, to be honest.” A nice attempt but that wasn’t what he was worried about. It was Shouta. Luckily it would only be All Might today but Izuku would have to request skintone sleeves before Shouta started joining in on the hero training.

All Might began explaining what they would be doing. They were in a fake city. They would be split into teams of two where one team would be the villain team and the other would be the hero team. The villains will have a fake bomb that they will hide somewhere in the building. Fifteen minutes later the heroes would enter and have to either subdue the villains or touch the bomb to win. If the time ran out or the heroes were captured then they lost. Simple enough.

Izuku drew out his ball: Team A. Looking around as everyone else began to partner up, the options were thinning for who his partner could possibly be were rapidly decreasing until he looked around and found that the only person standing alone was none other than Bakugou. Izuku let out a heavy sigh.  _ Seriously? _ He walked over, arms crossed. “A?” Bakugou scowled. “A.” They stared at each other long and hard.

“I don’t need your help to win this,” Bakugou announced. Izuku huffed. “I was just about to say the same thing.” Just then All Might pulled out the two teams that would be facing each other. “TEAM A SHALL BE THE VILLAIN TEAM AND TEAM C SHALL BE THE HERO TEAM. VILLAINS, YOU MAY NOW ENTER THE BUILDING AND HIDE YOUR BOMB.” Izuku walked over and grabbed the fake, paper mache bomb as Bakugou and Quilava stormed by. “Don’t get in our way, Deku,” the blonde growled. Izuku opened his mouth to respond when the smell of smoke hit his nose.

\-----

_ Izuku couldn’t breathe! It burned! Stop!  _

_ Mr. Midoriya grinned as he finally let go of the boy’s face, leaving him to only hack up smoke. When he looked up, the steady stream of smoke billowing from Mr. Midoriya’s mouth made him look more demon-like than human. _

\-----

Izuku shook his head.  _ Get a hold of yourself, Izuku! _ He grabbed the bomb and ran in after the pair. He and Chip decided on the fourth floor of the abandoned tower, near the middle. Bakugou had no complaints so that was good. Wait, why is he being submissive to Bakugou? Screw that! Mr. Midoriya is not here. Mr. Midoriya is not here. Mr. Midoriya is NOT HERE. Izuku bit his fingernail. “Vee?”  _ Calm down. It’s okay. _

\-----

_ ‘Shouta, it’s okay right?’ _

_ ‘Of course.’ _

\-----

Izuku straightened up.  _ It’s okay. _

Finally, it was time for the hero team to enter the building. Bakugou stormed off without letting Izuku get a word in, naturally. Izuku sighed. He didn’t really want to give up the bomb but he also needed to be active in this for, you know, a grade? Opting for patrolling floors three and four, Izuku moved down a level. Like the hound he is, Bakugou found the hero team right away which probably wasn’t hard considering the blonde, Aoyama, was loud as heck. Izuku rushed to the third floor stairs that led down to the second floor, entering the stairwell just as Uraraka was entering.

So that was their plan: to send her ahead hoping that Aoyama could hold off Bakugou. Doubtfully but not a bad plan. Izuku leapt off the stairs from the top at her. Uraraka’s eyes bulged. She pointed to him. “Moon blast!” Floette let loose a pink orb of power. “Chip, swift!” Chip jumped past him and let loose the starry attack. The two attacks collided, exploding into smoke. Still in the air, Izuku burst through the smoke.

\-----

_ A scolding hand came over the frightened child’s face. _

\-----

Izuku reached out his hand and it met Uraraka’s face. “Ack-!” They fell back. * **BAM** * Uraraka groaned from under his hand, her head having been slammed to the ground. A hand touched his arm and suddenly all gravity was lost on him. She threw him off and Izuku went spiraling into the staircase. Dang it! “Leafeon!” He was hoping to get through this without evolving. Uraraka hesitated as he and Chip changed. Ugh… the leaves were so itchy. He used the vines though to stabilize himself on the railings. Using his lost momentum, Uraraka and Floette ducked beneath the floating boy and up the stairs. “Chip, kick me!” Izuku released the vines just as Chip jumped up and kicked him in the stomach. He grunted but the results were as wanted. Izuku flew upward, twisting in the air. He grabbed Floette by her whole body, the pokemon small enough, and threw her back into Chip who immediately used quick attack on her. “Floette!” Uraraka turned back to her pokemon, forgetting Izuku.

Rookie mistake. 

He kicked off the wall, soaring to her but, oh, she didn’t forget. She tapped her fingers together. “Release!” Izuku let out a strangled sound as his gravity returned and he toppled down the stairs, the girl jumping over him and reaching her unconscious pokemon. “Floette, return,” she returned the flowery pokemon to its ball. Izuku got to his feet. Now the girl, alone, was trapped in the stairwell between him and Chip.

* **pop** * * **pop** *

Izuku’s eyes widened at the tale-tale sounds of explosions. An angry Bakugou rounded the corner at the bottom of the stairs, half of his black mask missing and blonde hair covered in ash. “Tsk. Can’t even handle a little girl, Deku?” he growled. “Move.” “I won’t,” Izuku responds. Bakugou clicked his tongue. “Fine, don’t blame me.” Viridian eyes widened. “Bakugo, wa-”

“Quilava, inferno.”

The pokemon’s mouth lit up. So many things happened at once. He, Uraraka, and Chip all scrambled up the stairs as fast as possible. Not fast enough. “Quil…” Izuku glances over his shoulder. “LAVA!” A roar of flames so large it reached the edges of the stairwell and even rebounded to make it more powerful came at them.

\-----

_ ‘Better run, little man.’ _

\-----

He looks down at Uraraka and Chip below him as they are nearly blinding in the light of the flames, the heat already reaching him. He remembers… the burning sensation. The feeling of flames covering each and every inch of his body. He remembers how his skin boiled under the heat and how his screams tore his throat so badly as it mingled with the suffocating smoke that he couldn’t speak for a week. He remembers the sleepless nights, having to lay backed against the cool floor at night aside from his underwear so the cold concrete could provide even a lick of relief to the burns that covered his body. He remembers the fear and he remembers the pain. Izuku remembers all of it and so… he acts.

“Chip, Vaporeon!” Izuku doesn’t wait for the change to start as he leaps off the stairs and jumps over Uraraka’s head. He meets her eyes midair. The fear in them mimics his nightly.

She’s too young, too innocent to experience that. Izuku may be the villain for this exercise but he is training to be a hero and, well, a true hero throws himself in harm's way for those who are in danger. “Chip, protect her.” Chip explodes a water gun on Uraraka to both propel her forward and to cover her in water. Izuku lands in the way of the flames, arms out.

\-----

_ ‘Better run, LiTtLe Man.’ _

\-----

Izuku  _ screams _ .

____________________________

It’s hot.

Ochaco can feel the heat all around her but it isn’t so bad that she can’t stand it. She peels her eyes open. She is on the floor, torso just out of the stairwell, legs still in. Her legs hurt the most, most likely receiving the most of the attack but they are also partly numb. Steam rises from her body from the Vaporeon’s attack, the water evaporating at the heat. On top of her is the Vaporeon. Despite being a water type, it’s back is slightly burned. It’s unconscious. She coughs harshly, smoke escaping her lungs. Looking up, there is smoke trapped up in the air by the ceiling.

She hears Bakugou’s miniature explosions popping, small flashes of light in the middle of the smoke. The small explosions act to stir the smoke revealing the blonde and, beneath him, Midoriya, blue haired with scales covering his cheeks. In a flash of light, however, the Vaporeon de-evolves into an Eevee and Midoriya goes back to normal as well, both unconscious and both wounded. Most of Midoriya’s costume is burned off but one can’t really see the exposed skin aside from ash and- Ochaco almost gags as she sees a few bubbles rising on Midoriya’s chest and popping. 

“Well, well, well, it seems my partner has betrayed me,” Bakugou’s voice strikes fear in her heart but also anger. How could he release an attack like that on his partner? No… On a HUMAN?! Midoriya lets out a weak cough. The smoke is the worst in the stairwell. She needs to get him out. “Now it’s just me and you, hero.”

Ochaco struggles to her feet. She gasps in pain, falling to the ground. Her legs really are the worst. Bakugou laughs. “Give it up, hero.” Gritting her teeth, Ochaco presses her hand to her chest and negates her own gravity, pushing off to float in the air. “I will not,” she replies. “A hero does not leave someone wounded in front of them, not if they can do anything about it and a hero never gives up!”

Bakugou smirks. “Your funeral.” He holds up a hand, palm already lighting up for the attack.

“YOUNG BAKUGOU, THAT IS ENOUGH,” They jumped, Bakugou turning around. In the stairwell stood All Might and he did not look like the smiley hero they all knew him as. “Why are you stopping me, All Might?” Ochaco released her quirk, wincing when she fell to her legs. “I DON’T THINK I SHOULD HAVE TO SAY IT BUT YOUR FORCE WAS EXCESSIVE. THAT ATTACK IN SUCH AN ENCLOSED SPACE COULD HAVE KILLED SOMEONE. GO BACK TO THE CLASS. WE WILL DISCUSS AFTER THE CONSEQUENCES.”

For all his defiant attitude, Bakugou returned Quilava and left because, really, who can defy the number one hero?

“YOUNG URARAKA,” All Might addressed her, “MEDIC ROBOTS WILL BE HERE TO GET YOU, YOUR TEAMMATE, AND YOUNG MIDORIYA. DO YOU NEED HELP?” She shook her head. “Thank you, All Might.” He nodded and left.

Ochaco dragged herself down the stairs by Midoriya, lifting his head gently to place it on her lap and wait. She couldn’t help but look at his body. She had seen the scars on his arms and legs earlier but now with most of his torso exposed, aside from the newly acquired burns, she saw a canvas of scars and burns. She can’t help but wonder what happened to him. Coughing slightly, she heard the whir of the medical robots. “Over here!” Ochaco called and soon they were all carted away back to the school.

____________________________

* **BANG** *

Shouta slammed open Recovery Girl’s door. “ _ Where the hell is he? _ ” Chiyo let out a sigh from the side of a cot. She pushed away from it, rolling away in her swivel stool. The older woman closed the curtain, hiding whoever it was from view. “Shouta,” she waved a finger. “Quiet down or you will wake them. Come here and listen to me before you make any brash decisions.” Shouta narrowed his eyes but nonetheless complied, closing the door before sitting. “Midoriya and Uraraka got the brunt of it,” the elderly woman started. “Aoyama is unconscious too, having been knocked unconscious by a smaller but still direct explosion to the left of his head. He may suffer hearing loss in that ear.”

Shouta nodded and she continued.

“Thanks to Midoriya’s and Eevee's quick thinking, Uraraka was covered in enough water and shielded from the attack enough to not be nearly as injured as Midoriya was and my quirk helped a lot with her healing but she will need to take it easy on walking the next few days.”

“What about Izuku?” Shouta pressed.

“Midoriya took the full front of the attack to guard Uraraka and Eevee and when I say took it I mean he literally jumped down the stairs and threw himself in the direct line of fire. What mostly protected him was the thought to have Chip evolve into Vaporeon but he was midway through the transformation between that and Leafeon when he was hit and some of the recoil damage of being weak to fire added to his injuries.” Shouta cursed. Of course Izuku would do that. “Most of his body was completely burned aside from his back but even then that was pretty bad. I couldn’t heal him too much because he was already unconscious and he will need his energy to heal but I healed him enough that most of it won’t scar.”  _ MOST. Not ALL. _ “But I don’t think that will matter much.”

“What do you mean?”

Chiyo pursed her lips. “Shouta, I will let you see him but if I do, I need you to promise to stay calm.” He tensed. “When I say that, I mean that it will just blend in with other scars, and there are a lot, that were not obviously not properly treated at the time of receiving them. Most of them you won’t be able to see because he is in a lot of bandages right now but there are some you will definitely see. I don’t know if this is the ‘evidence’ you need to help this boy but if it is not, especially since most of them are covered, then I think this will definitely be a big part in your portfolio. After this, I think honestly all you will need is a verbal statement from the boy about what is happening at home.” “Is it really that bad?” Shouta asked. Chiyo looked over at the curtain.

“ **Oh, Shouta** ,” she sounded so sad for someone who has dealt with many worse wounds, “ **you have no idea.** ”

Without any further prompting, Shouta quickly crossed the room and yanked the curtain back. “Dino?” Chiyo’s Audino was by the bed, paws lit up in a soft glow over the body of Midoriya Izuku. Izuku looked… well, he didn’t look good. He was pale, but that was a given, and just as Chiyo had said he was covered in bandages. His hero costume was replaced with a hospital gown. Izuku’s entire torso was wrapped. From somewhere under the gown to just below the knees were his legs wrapped as well. His arms were completely wrapped aside from his hands. Chiyo had focused most on his face it would seem as that wasn’t really bandaged.

But that wasn’t what caught his eyes. It was the bit of chest he did see that he could see a few scars peaking out, not from the battle. His legs that were exposed were covered in an array of scars of every shape and size. Some were even previous burn marks.

Shouta recalls Mr. Midoriya’s quirk as fire breathing. He recalls a few other things too, such as Izuku’s initial hesitancy with Flareon and how he absolutely refused to light a fire in the mansion even during the winter. Shouta had a hunch but he is pretty sure that Izuku is afraid of fire, even if his lighter for smoking doesn’t seem to scare him too much. Seeing past burns on his body though makes Shouta more confident of that fact and yet he still put himself in front of the blast.

“Audino is speeding up the healing without using his energy as we speak,” Chiyo said softly. “I have a feeling that he will need to be in as best of shape as possible for what waits for him at home.” Shouta hummed. “By protocol, we had to call his parents.” The raven-haired man froze. “ _ You what? _ ”

“Don’t give me that, Shouta.” she lightly whapped his leg with her cane. “You know I didn’t have a choice.” He sighed. “Yes, I know. Sorry.” She shook her head. “Don’t be. They should be arriving in just over two hours. I will let you know when they arrive so you aren’t caught if you would like to sit with him but do try and be quiet. Uraraka and Aoyama are resting behind the curtains past him. I will cover yours completely so they don’t see you either.” Shouta offered a sad smile. “Thanks, Chiyo.”

She waved him. “At any rate, I don’t think it will be too much longer until you get a statement from him.” Shouta tilted his head. “What makes you think that?” “Just a feeling. One doesn’t experience this much without saying something. That and,” she narrowed her eyes, “I don’t think his mental state is going to put up with this much longer.”

Shouta didn’t need her to explain. He had only seen it a few times but over the years Shouta had witnessed Izuku acting a bit… strange. He couldn’t very well explain it, just that it wasn’t normal. If Chiyo had noticed it in just a week of knowing Izuku then he wasn’t wrong. He had noticed Izuku getting more and more unstable. He was having spasms more often in recent months and even when just sitting or doing anything simple and mundane his arm would jerk and his eyes would blow wide, mouth splitting wide. He’d always say those two words with such glee that it was almost unsettling:

‘It’s okay.’

It was like there was a misfiring in Izuku’s brain somewhere. Obviously that is true as that is a large cause of seizures but it was something different.  _ Something _ was not registering correctly in the boy’s brain for one thing or another but in another light something  _ was _ registering whenever that phrase was said and  _ something _ about the two of them combined was keeping Izuku from telling them what was going on.

“Still, I think it will take a bit longer,” Shouta states, “to get him to speak up. What he needs is to know that the heroes here can handle the situation and get those that Izuku is protecting out of harm’s way. Izuku won’t say anything unless he knows the people he is protecting are safe or will be safe if he tells. He needs to realize that the heroes here, the adults here, aren’t like his parents or like the adults back in Vaniville Town.” Chiyo hummed. “Perhaps but we can only wait and see.”

Shouta sits on the edge of the cot as Chiyo closes the curtain. He brushes Izuku’s hair with his hand, pulling it back to find his hand covered in ash. The green is darker too.

Shouta thinks there is something about that phrase that Izuku and Chip have some strange fascination with. He doesn’t understand it but after the first few times he said it, he knows it isn’t a healthy one. Taking out his phone, Shouta snaps a few pictures of the scars on the greenette’s legs and chest. It isn’t enough. He needs a bit more, _just a_ _little bit more_! However, it is definitely to be added to the case he has been building which, again, isn’t a lot but it’s something. With this… all he needs is a verbal statement and then finally, _finally_ , he can take Mr. Midoriya in court and maybe, just maybe, get some adoption papers.

He had talked to Detective Tsukauchi about what it would take to adopt a child in the foster care system. The man had said that he should enroll and get accepted as fast as possible. It usually takes a few months to get assigned your first foster child but if Izuku makes a name for himself at the Sports Festival coming up soon then it wouldn’t surprise Tsukauchi for the first family to get him to adopt him hoping to make money off of a promising hero student. He did say, however, that if Shouta was accepted as a foster parent already, he would be willing to pull a few strings and get Izuku placed with him first. Then they can start the adoption process. But what comes first?

The verbal statement.

Shouta carefully swung his legs onto the cot and leaned against the wall. He gently pulled Izuku to partially lay on his legs. Frowning sadly at his kid, this fifteen year old boy, Shouta felt a few tears well in his eyes. He didn’t know he could ever feel so strongly about a child.

_ Please… let me help you. _

____________________________

_ ‘Be faster, little man.’ _

_ It burns. _

_ ‘Get up, Little Man.’ _

_ It Burns. _

_ ‘Keep moving, LiTtLe Man.’ _

_ IT BURNS! _

_ ‘Run, LITTLE MAN.’ _

\-----

Izuku jolts up screaming. Everything hurts. His whole body feels as though it were on fire. 

_ ItburnsItburnsItburnsItburnsItburnsItburnsItburnsItburnsItburnsItburnsItburnsItburns- _

“Izuku!”

His head jolts up only for a hand to immediately cover his eyes. “Calm down,” a familiar voice. “Listen to my voice before you look me in the eyes,” not Mr. Midoriya’s voice. “You are alright.”  _ No… not that. _ “Calm down.”  _ It burns _ . “Breathe.”  _ I can’t. _ He’s guided back down to a lying position. The hand removes itself and wet viridian eyes look up to meet Shouta’s black ones. The man’s arms reach down to his own. It burns when he makes contact but so gently he pulls them apart, stopping Izuku from hurting himself further. “You’re injured.” Izuku takes a shaky breath. The burning sensation in his body, now dulled to what it usually feels like after the initial burn, does nothing to quail the memories of his pained past and what he knows is to come. Izuku squeezes his eyes shut.

_ It’s okay… It’s okay… It’s okay… _

A hand weaves its way through his hair. It’s relaxing, calming. It feels like a distant woman’s hand, back when he was three or four. Back before he was diagnosed with elementlessness. It felt like the time back when she  _ loved _ him. She? No, no, no. She is dead now. She doesn’t exist to him anymore. She doesn’t, she doesn’t she  _ doesn’t. _ So why does it hurt so much? He can’t be fooled. Love is fake. Adults are fake. They are all  _ liars _ . Izuku opened his eyes, looking back up at Shouta. “Wh- what are you d- d- doing?” He hates the way he stutters.

“ **My Dad,** ” Shouta starts, not looking at him, “ **used to do this for me when I was younger and afraid or hurt too.** ”

Izuku’s breath hitches. What is that supposed to mean? His dad? Do this for him too? Like, as in, he is acting like- No. Wait. But he isn’t- Izuku bit his tongue. So many things he could have said. He could have snapped and said that Shouta wasn’t his father.  _ Father’s are fake _ . He could have said that they aren’t that close.  _ Relationships are a lie _ . He could have said anything to refute what the Hobo just said but… he didn’t. Because deep down, it made Izuku happy and deep down…

… he wished it were true.

So Izuku just turns hums and his head to the side. He closes his eyes and lets himself for just this moment, accept the kindness offered to him because he knows that when he gets home tonight, every once of this warmth will be stripped away and somewhere in the back of his mind he knows he will be forced to rid himself of this feeling of love and care to protect his sanity.

Izuku knows very well that he does this. He knows that some of the things he does or thinks isn’t exactly what one would call mentally or emotionally healthy. He knows that at some point this wall of ‘it’s okays’ and hatred will come toppling down and only hurt him in the end.

But he can’t stop. He’s afraid to. He is afraid of what will happen, not only to him but also to Inha, Mrs. Midoriya, Serena, Hitoshi, and to Nurse Hope if he does. So he doesn’t. Izuku will continue to tell himself every night as he traces the word on the wall that it is okay.

Because it is. It  _ has _ to be. It  _ is _ . It is because Shouta says it is.

So Izuku falls asleep once more to the  _ loving _ feeling and for now… that is okay. 

But the peace doesn’t last long as only fifteen minutes later Recovery Girl strolls through the door and opens the curtain, startling Izuku awake again. “He’s here,” she announces solemnly. Izuku tilts his head. “He?” Shouta’s hand finds his shoulder, giving it a small squeeze. The greenette’s heart drops to his stomach.  _ He _ is here.

Shouta stands, leaving the bed. Izuku misses the warmth but as soon as Mr. Midoriya finally makes it to the doorway of the nurse’s office; it is all forgotten, replaced with cold, hard anger and crippling fear when he takes one look into those back orbs.

“Izuku!” the man yells with fake concern, rushing forward and wrapping his arms around him. It burns, his body still not completely healed. He knows Mr. Midoriya purposefully chose the most painful and uncomfortable clothing to wear when he hugs Izuku, the bandages providing minimal protection against his burns.

“Mr. Midoriya,” Recovery Girl scolds, “I understand you are concerned about your son’s health but please refrain from touching him too much. My quirk and Audino can only do so much.” Mr. Midoriya squeezes him a bit too tightly, Izuku having to clench his teeth to keep from crying out, before stepping back and turning to her. “Of course,” he says, scratching the back of his head embarrassed. “My bad. I was just so worried when I got the call.” She nods. “Midoriya is fine. He should stay h-” Izuku tensed. Recovery Girl cleared her throat. “He is good to come back to school on Monday-”  _ Huh? _ “- but he will need to take it easy for a bit. We will keep his uniform until he comes back. Loose clothing will be fine and… No extraneous activities!” Mr. Midoriya nodded. “Right.” He bowed. “Let’s go, Izuku.”

The greenette nodded, swinging his feet off of the cot and standing only to fall immediately, gasping in pain. “Oh dear,” Recovery Girl tutted. “I had a feeling this would be the case.” Izuku flinched when a hand came into view. He glanced up at Mr. Midoriya. The man’s eyes said it all. He quickly accepted the hand. It was hot but why wouldn’t it be?

Mr. Midoriya  _ loved _ doing these little invisible things in public, small reminders that no matter where Izuku was, Mr. Midoriya could hurt him. He was on a leash no matter what. 

“Here you go, sonny,” Recovery Girl pulled out and unfolded a wheelchair for him, his backpack hanging off of it. Izuku was all too happy to sit in it because it meant that he didn’t need to lean on Mr. Midoriya. “Have a good day.” As Mr. Midoriya wheeled him away, Izuku took a second glance into the nurse’s office at Recovery Girl.  She almost said that he needed to stay home. He  _ knows _ that she did. So why didn’t she? Why did she cover for him?

The car ride home was tense. Izuku’s head was spinning with every terrible conclusion to the day that he could think of. Three hours of silence with this man and he was going crazy. He constantly had to calm himself so he wouldn’t twitch too much. It hurt and annoyed Mr. Midoriya when he did and Izuku was screwed enough as it was.

“Akatani? What’s wroooong?!” Inha ran up to him as he was wheeled into the Midoriya’s house. The greenette tried to grin through his internal turmoil. Not even she called him Mikumo. 

\-----

_ ‘I thought we call close friends by their first name!’ Inha inquired. _

_ Inko ruffled her hair. ‘We do, sweetie.’ _

_ ‘Then why are you calling Mikumo by his last name? Is Mikumo not close to us?’ _

_ The woman smiled. ‘Let’s talk later, Inha.’ _

\-----

The answer? No, no he is not close to this family. This sweet, lovely, innocent,  _ perfect _ family. Izuku isn’t part of this family. Mikumo isn’t part of this family. It is better without them. They just mess things up. It’s better this way. He doesn’t need to be ‘Mikumo’ to her. ‘Akatani’ is fine. It’s OkAy. 

“I just got a little bruised up at hero school today,” he eased her worries. “Don’t worry. I’ll be okay.” She grinned. “Alight, sweetpea,” Mr. Midoriya hushed, “Akatani is tired so why don’t you skedaddle to your room, mk?” “Yes, Dad! Bye, bye, Akatani!” Mikumo watched her leave down the hall.

“Ak~a~ta~ni,” Mr. Midoriya sing-songed, mocking him. His wheelchair jolted and they continued into the house. “Ak~a~ta~ni.”  _ Stop… _ They stopped by the closet, Smokey pushing it open, sending him a sad glance. “Ak~a~ta~ni.”  _ Shut up…! _ The box was pushed off and the metal trap door was opened.Mr. Midoriya positioned his wheelchair to the edge. Mikumo braced himself. 

* **push** *

He didn’t scream as he and the wheelchair flew down the stairs. Inha once questioned the sound and he had to pay for it. No, he grit his teeth as he tumbled down the stair, burned skin peeling, reddening the white bandages underneath. The air was forced out of him as he landed back first on the floor. His body screamed in pain. A chuckle from above drew his attention to the top of the stairs where Mr. Midoriya stood like a shadow in the bright light of the upper house.

“Goodnight, Ak~a~ta~niiiiiii.” He closed the door.

_ Stop it…  _ Izuku wiped his eyes.  _ I get it already! I’m not one of you! I get it! _ He rolled over painfully, looking up in the direction of the bathroom.  _ I’m different. _ He clawed forward on all fours, too painful to stand, too shaky to walk.  _ I’m different. I’m not like them! I’m not Midoriya. I get it!  _ He grabbed onto the sink platform, hauling himself up. Flicking on the lights, they flashed overhead, ready to go out at any time.

_ Change _ .

His hands fumbled for his piercing needle, pricking himself one or two times.

_ ChAnGe. _

  
  


Izuku lines it up on his eyebrow, close by his other eyebrow piercing.

IZUKU IS DIFFERENT!!!

* **Stab** *

He watches the blood roll, blurry in his vision but oh so beautiful in his mind. He’s different. He’s not Midoriya. He’s Izuku. Izuku is okay. Izuku is okay. Izuku is okay. His vision in his right eye goes red as blood streams over it. Izuku is okay. Izuku is okay. Izuku is okay. He falls to his knees as he pushes off the counter, pain not registering in him.

\-----

_ ‘Shouta, it’s okay, right?’ _

_ ‘Of course.’ _

\-----

Izuku okay. Izuku is okay. Izuku is okay. 

\-----

_ Everything is okay because Mommy says so and- _

\-----

Izuku is okay. Izuku is okay. Izuku is okay. Izuku is okay… because Shouta said so and... Shouta  _ never lies _ .


	12. The Unforeseen Simulation Joint

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The USJ happens.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone?
> 
> Don't worry for you pokemon fans. I do plan on having some pokemon-like plot points happening in this fic. It just happens that the way the schooling at UA goes is pushing them back a bit so it is more school-like... ish? I feel like I worded that oddly. My bad!

“I didn’t do anything wrong!” Katsuki slammed his hands on the principal’s desk. Was this mole rat stupid or something?

The pokemon of a principal’s face screamed unimpressed. “You had your pokemon release a lethal attack on two classmates in an enclosed area knowing full well that they could not flee in time. Even if it were not lethal, for the exercise Midoriya was your partner and you still attacked him.” “He was in the way,” Katsuki refuted. “And I completed my mission-”

“Actually,” Principal Nedzu held up a hand, “due to the recklessness of your actions, your team lost.” Katsuki’s eyes widened. “WHAT THE HELL?! I took out the heroes! That was the mission! If All Might hadn’t-” “Stepped in,” Principal Nedzu interrupted him, “then your classmate, Uraraka, may have suffered even more damage. If it were not for Recovery Girl’s quirk and Midoriya’s quick thinking she would be in physical therapy right now for walking. Aoyama is another matter. He is suffering permanent hearing loss in his left ear because of your quirk and now your parents have to pay for his medical bills.” Katsuki flinched. “Are you saying my quirk isn’t suitable for heroics?”

Principal Nedzu shook his head. “Not at all. It is quite splendid for this field actually.”

“Then what’s the problem? I got the job done.”

“You caused more injuries than not. Using it in the way you did and commanding Quilava in the way you did was an action more suitable for a villain than a hero.”

Katsuki’s mouth fell dry.  _ Wh- what? _

“Bakugou,” the rat continued, “you certainly are suited for heroics, no doubt, but not in the way you are currently using it. You must learn how to wield it in such a way you don’t cause life-threatening injuries or death in some cases, keeping your palms away while still using the blast of your explosions to attack.” Katsuki scowled. “I know how to do that.”

“And yet you still purposefully didn’t.” The blonde bit his tongue. “I am not expelling you,” Principal Nedzu finally said. “This school’s job is to teach you how to use your powers for heroics after all. However, I am assigning you to a week’s worth of after school detention, counseling with Hound Dog, and hero lesson probation after the weekend.” Katsuki gawked. “During this time you will still be allowed to watch your fellow students in their training but instead of joining them I would like you to observe how they use their quirks for good instead of harm. By the end of the week I want a written report on what you noticed and how you plan to change.”

“Hey-”

“That is all. You are dismissed.”

Katsuki growled, spinning around and storming out of the principal’s office. Dang mole. This was all Deku’s fault in the first place. If that quirkless bastard would have just gotten the job done right then none of this would have happened. It’s not Katsuki’s fault they let a freaking elementless kid in. But, oh, he’s not, right? What the hell is that power anyway? The freak shouldn’t be able to do that. He is supposed to be back in Vaniville, in that junk, good for nothing town where he belongs. Dagnabbit, if only he hadn’t come. 

\-----

_ ‘Sorry, I don’t talk to people who eat dust.’ _

\-----

That flunky… Katsuki would show everyone what a cheater he actually was and prove to everyone here that  _ he _ was the best and that  _ he _ was the only one from Vaniville Town that was worth enough to be here.

____________________________

“Go to sleep.”

“No.”

“You need to rest.”

“I’m okay.”

“You obviously aren’t.”

“Shut up, Hobo.”

Izuku was currently sitting on the couch of the teacher’s lounge, knees pulled against his chest, forehead resting on them, and his arms limp by his side. He wasn’t  _ tired _ per se, just more mentally exhausted more than anything. He just wanted to close his eyes and never open them again. Could he do that? Something soft hit his head making him look up. Shouta held up a pillow and a blanket. “You just keep those around?” Present Mic leaned back from his desk. “Actually, we have a whole storage for blankets and pillows specifically for Shouta.” Izuku ignored him. Shouta placed the pillow at the end of the couch and pointed to it. “Sleep.” “No.” * **sigh…** * “What do I need to do to get you to sleep?” Shouta urged.

Izuku shrugged, resting his chin on his knees. How could he sleep when all of these adults were around? How could he sleep with ‘Mr. Yamada  _ Hizashi _ ’ was around?

“Hey, kiddo,” Midnight came over, “how about this.” She whipped out her phone. “You don’t have to sleep, just lay down. You can watch Bridal Dresses while you rest, alright?” Izuku pursed his lips. That wasn’t a bad offer. She was already pulling it up and handing it to him so Izuku didn’t think he really had a choice. He accepted the phone. Shouta pointed at the pillow. “Izuku.” The greenette let out a sigh but nonetheless laid down and started the show. Shouta draped the blanket over him, giving Izuku a light pat on the head before leaving.

It wasn’t long until the phone slipped from his hands and he dozed off. 

____________________________

Nemuri is feeling just a little bit proud of herself. She thinks she has made some lead way with Midoriya.

“Hey, hey, Midnight,” The boy turned over the couch and held out the phone. “What is this form called?”

Some major lead way. He’d usually fall asleep or something while watching his show on her phone but every once in a while he wouldn’t. Now he was even asking her questions, actively engaging in and even starting conversations with her, though they were always short and always about dresses. Who knew wedding dresses would be the way to wiggle her way into this boy’s stone cold heart? Nemuri leaned over to get a closer look. Being a long time watcher of Bridal Dresses, Nemuri likes to think she knows a thing or two about the terminology used in it. “I believe that’s called an A-Line,” she responded. Midoriya nodded and turned back to the show, whipping out his sketchbook and noting that.

“Say, Midoriya,” she leaned over the back of the couch, “have you ever thought about entering the designer field?” He didn’t look up from his sketchbook. “I’m becoming a hero.” “Yes, yes,” she waved him, “but many heroes have second jobs or side-gigs like me, Shouta, and Yamada,” purposefully omitting Hizashi’s first name but making sure to include him, “are all teacher’s here at UA as well.” Izuku was silent. He closed his sketchbook. “I don’t really have the means to pursue that…” And then a quiet whisper Nemuri isn’t sure she was meant to hear. “I don’t think Mr. Midoriya would like it that much…”

She hummed, not really knowing what to say to that.

____________________________

Izuku yawned, walking into the teacher’s lounge on Friday like he owned the place. His legs felt more stable now. He was in a wheelchair up until Tuesday, getting minimal treatments from Recovery Girl and Audino, and then he was taking it easy for the rest of the week. Man was that press break-in wild though on Wednesday. He almost lost his balance on shaky legs so many times it was a wonder he didn’t get trampled underfoot. Today his legs finally felt like his own. Chip jumped from his shoulder onto the coffee table in front of the couch. “Eevee!” Izuku hummed and sat, rubbing at his eyes. Yesterday was long. Mr. Midoriya got back to ‘training’ as soon as he saw that Izuku wasn’t peeling over dead. Now he felt like he was again.

“Eevee, ee!” “What is iiiiiiit?” Izuku blinked blearily at the laptop on the coffee table that Chip was tapping with his paw rapidly. Izuku sighed and leaned up. There was a sticky note on top of it. He lifted his glasses, rubbing his eyes a bit before sliding them back on. Were his eyes getting worse? He squinted at the paper. It read:

_ ‘Little listener, the password to this _

_ laptop is 67503. If you look up _

_ mydesigncourse. edu and use the same _

_ password and username Izuku, I think _

_ you will like what you find.’ _

Izuku blinked. Little listener… Little listener… Present Mic. Present Hizashi Mic. The greenette side-glared at the man who was whistling at his desk. What was he plotting? Izuku bent over and picked up the laptop, setting it on his lap. Beneath the laptop, still on the table, was a sketchbook, some actual art pencils, and a regular composition notebook. Izuku’s hands twitched with the urge to draw, to  _ design _ , but these were a ‘gift’ from Present Mic. They could explode for all he knows. Chip nudged the sketchbook open. Izuku blinked. It wasn’t a normal sketch book. Suddenly, all wariness as lost as Izuku lurched forward and picked it up, thumbing through the pages. Some of them had body outlines, some were blank, others had lines and close up circles. This wasn’t just a sketchbook. This was a fashion design sketchbook, specifically for those who design clothing. Izuku set the notebook beside him and opened the laptop, suddenly eager to see where the man had directed him. Just as the sticky note said, Izuku logged into mydesigncourse. edu.

‘ **Welcome, Izuku, to your online beginners class on clothing design.** ’

Izuku took in a shaky breath. Chip jumped over the gap between the table and the couch to see. “Vee!” Izuku scooped up the pokemon into his arms, burying his face into the soft, brown fur. Chip purred in his hold. Izuku sniffed. He tried, and failed, to stifle his tears. 

Shouta leaned over the couch at what was on the screen. The hand on Izuku’s shoulder only served to make him cry harder.

____________________________

Hizashi hummed, feeling rather pleased with himself today. He thinks he did a good thing. Midoriya was all over the computer after his initial breakdown over what Hizashi did. He had heard what Nemuri and the boy were talking about and decided that when the opportunity presented itself to get himself just a bit closer to the boy he would take it. Hizashi looked into fashion design himself at one point before, being the eccentric person he is, before he decided on a hero and entertainer. That was how he knew about the course. He never really had the money for it but now working as a pro hero, a teacher at UA, and a radio host it is safe to say that he has the money for it and he is willing to spend it on a boy who so desperately needs this kind of support in life when it is so painfully obvious that Shouta was probably the only adult support he had growing up, aside from Nurse Hope Shouta says but even she couldn’t intervene too much.

He stood up as it was almost time for class to start. He passed by the coffee table, looking down to see the laptop, notebooks, and pencils. On top of the laptop was a piece of paper.

_ ‘Thank you.’ _

Yes, Hizashi thinks he did a good thing today.

____________________________

“Feels good to be able to participate fully this time,” Izuku sighed as he stretched his arms. Over the past week he could only participate in hero training here and there. Today, however, they were going to an off-campus location and he was allowed to finally be back in the swing of things. Aside from getting splashed with cold water in the morning, as per the new usual apparently, today was going pretty good!

Hitoshi hummed. He leaned over and showed the greenette his phone. “Serena needs the next costume in a few weeks.” Izuku furrowed his eyebrows. “Isn’t that a bit short notice?” Hitoshi nods. “Yes but most of her class already had prepared costumes coming from bigger places than Vaniville Town and richer families too. I think the dressmaker can do it and we can get it shipped off just in time but that means I am going to need the design today.” Izuku nodded. “I have that portfolio together. What’s the theme?”

Ash leaned over. “Dresses? Yuck.” Izuku rolled his eyes. “It’s for a friend.”

“Say, Midoriya,” Asui spoke up from the row over. They were all on the bus to the off-campus location. “I always speak what is on my mind, ribbit. That power of yours and your pokemon’s is quite extraordinary, impossible even. Would you mind if I ask how you do it, ribbit?” Izuku hummed. “Well, kinda.” Asui blinked, obviously not having expected such a response. Izuku shrugged. “It just sort of happened or something. Sorry, I ain’t got much more than that.”

“You don’t have an element, correct?” Iida spoke up. Izuku sighed, slouching in his seat. “Yeah, that’s right.” “Nor a quirk. Peculiar.” Izuku rolled his eyes. When will they all get over it? It’s not like it is some super awesome, supreme impossible power.

(*cough cough*)

Asui croaked and turned back to her original conversation. Izuku sighed, leaning his head back against the window. His head was pounding. You couldn’t see it but under his mass of hair was a new scar forming, right now a scab. Izuku can still remember the moment his head hit the side of the weight bar. For a split second he had blacked out only to see the ground coming to him at a rapid rate when he came two. Mr. Midoriya left after that, gratefully, but Izuku couldn’t stand for a while. Chip, on more two than three legs as his left back one got hurt too, hobbled over and attempted to patch him up as Izuku really wasn’t too aware of what was happening at that moment, more keen on staring at the ceiling because it was so pretty the way it spun around him and the black spots dotted his vision making little stars on it.

It’s okay. He pulled himself to his feet about three hours of that and Chip trying to keep him awake so he wouldn’t die or something.

But dang a cigarette sounded really good right about now. He still smokes, just not nearly as frequently. He still steals them from the PokeMart when he goes to ‘get food’ but now he hides them more discreetly and will only smoke one maybe once a week on the way to school, opening a window on the bus to Aquacorde Town.

The bus came to a halt and all of the students got off. A large glass dome stood before them in the middle of an open field. “Come on,” Shouta urged, leading the students in. He and Izuku met eyes.

\-----

_ Izuku sighed. He didn’t have a chance to get sleeves in time for his costume. The boy slipped into the white gear and suit and joined his classmates outside at the bus. Shouta walked up to greet them, the first time the man was joining the hero lessons. _

_ Their eyes met. Black orbs widened, trailing slowly down his exposed arms and legs. _

_ Izuku quickly turned away, wrapping his arm around Ash’s shoulder, laughing a bit too loudly, too happily, guiding them both onto the bus. _

\-----

Izuku huffed and stormed past.

_ It’s okay. It’s okay. It’s okay. _ They entered the dome in a slew of oohs and awes. They stood on in a blank area but it led down to stairs with a massive clearing, only a fountain in the middle. All around the clearing were different zones and biomes. There was a snowy zone, a shipwreck zone, a mountain zone, a fire zone, and so many more! It was amazing!

“Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh,” Uraraka squealed. “It’s Thirteen and Malamar!”

Thirteen, the space hero, and Malamar, his squid-like pokemon, tall and daunting, strolled up. Shouta and Umbreon walked up beside them. “Greetings, student!” Thirteen waved. “Welcome to the Unforeseen Simulation Joint! Today you will be participating in rescue training here at the USJ. Each of you will choose a zone, and there will be many of you in the same zone, and work at rescuing fake civilians scattered throughout. We will be stopping by each to give instructions and pointers but first, I’d like to talk about your powers. Please release your pokemon for they need to hear this too.”

Everyone did. Chip popped out in his costume with a happy “Vee!” before it was cut off. Izuku and Chip looked at each other. They both felt it. A shiver ran down their spines. The only kind of shiver that registers in those used to danger. Todoroki also stiffened beside him. Izuku whipped his head up to Shouta but the man was already looking around. In the middle of Thirteen’s speech, something happened. The lights began to flicker in the dome.

In the middle of the clearing, at the bottom of the stairs, a swirl of purple began to form, getting wider and wider until a hand reached through. Izuku jumped back, grabbing Ash’s arm along the way habitually. “Wha- Izuku?” Hundreds of unsavory looking people and pokemon alike began walking out of the purple mist.

“Is this part of the training?” Kirishima stepped forward. Izuku reached out and grabbed his arm. “Stay back.” Shouta threw his arm behind him. “Thirteen, get the children out of here!”

“No,” Todoroki replied to the redhead’s question. “Those are villains.”

It all happened in a blur. Shouta pulled out a couple more pokeballs, releasing a Seviper and an Absol, the two pokemon Izuku had only met on occasion. “Shouta!” Izuku couldn’t help but scream as the man and his pokemon jumped into the arena. Hitoshi held him back. “Izuku, you can’t-”

“ **Oh?** ” They all whipped around to a man in a suit with a body made of the same mist substance that let all of the villains in. “Were our sources mistaken? I believe All Might was supposed to be here?” “What do you wa-”

“Chip, swift!”

Chip let loose the powerful stars at the man. “Hmm?” Mist man waved his arm and a swirl of purple swallowed them. * **BOOM** * “Mal!” They spun around at Malamar’s cry. Behind him was a closing… “Portals! He makes portals!” Izuku warns. “I guess I am found out,” the man raises his arm. “Goodbye.” Izuku saw the mist spread from beneath them, students disappearing. Oh  _ hell _ no. He spun and jumped, hitting the ground with a roll as the other students were swallowed leaving only him, Iida, Uraraka, and Hagakure. Even Thirteen had gone missing.

“Well, well, well, I guess I missed a few stragglers.”

Izuku crouched low.  _ Think. The door is behind him. That means we just need…  _ “Iida,” he whispered, “we will make the distraction but no matter what, you need to get out and alert the authorities.” Iida gasped. “I could never leave-”

“Jigglypuff?” Hagakure looked around. Well, he thinks she did. She was invisible after all. “Where’s Jigglypuff?!” Izuku froze. Now that he thinks about it…  _ Where’s Chip? _ Izuku cursed. “Iida, we are going!” “Huh?!” He didn’t wait. Uraraka nodded sharply and joined him in the advance. They ran. “Floette, fairy wind!” she cried out. So her pokemon hadn’t gotten transported. “It is useless, just accept your fate,” the warper opened a warp, swallowing the fairy winds. Izuku heard the wind before he felt it. He ducked low, swerving to the left just as it grazed past him. He got behind the man before realizing that right now, Izuku is quirkless.

_ Fine, hand to hand works too. _

Only, when he swung out his fist was swallowed. Uraraka yelped, ducking. It didn’t matter. What mattered was that the man was distracted. “Iida, go!” The boy hesitated. Izuku jumped out of the way of a portal. “GO!” he yelled. Finally, Iida moved, using the engines in his legs to propel himself to the door. “Sorry, I can’t allow you to leave,” mist man raised his hand. “Oh no you don’t! Floette, magical leaf!” The glowing green leaves swirled around mist man. “Wait!” Izuku’s call came too late as a portal opened and took them, throwing them at Iida.

“Bisharp, fury cutter!” Iida shouted, his steel-type pokemon jumping in the way and slicing the leaves apart with incredible speed. Well, that is what Iida is known for. Mist man cursed, raising another hand.  _ Not happening. He is wearing clothes so there is a body somewhere! _ Izuku jumped up and grabbed a hold of the metal brace around the man’s neck. “Go, Iida!” The boy nodded. Izuku let out a breath of relief as Iida got out. “Midoriya, jump!” He did, kicking off the man and making him stumble just as a moon blast hit the villain. Wait, no.

The pain registered first. The pink orb of energy exited the warp gate and smashed into Izuku’s back. He screeched as he fell to the floor. “Midoriya!” He pushed himself to his feet. “I’m okay,” he grunted, swaying a bit. “It is time we end this,” the mist man raised a hand, purple mist spreading from it. Izuku braced himself.

Then it happened.

He began to glow. Scales grew up his neck and cheeks and down his arms. His hair and eyes turned a deep blue. Unprepared for it, water began to fill in his lungs as well.  _ Wait, I shouldn’t be- Chip… _ Chip was somewhere in this area probably, evolving. “What’s this?” “Uraraka, now!” She nodded. The mist man spun around just in time to see her drop from floating behind him and her hands touch his neck brace, negating his gravity. She dropped herself. Using the water in his lungs, Izuku let loose a powerful stream of water. “Floette, moon blast!” The combined attacks set the man flying into the air. “Release!” Uraraka yelled. Mist man plummeted to the earth but below him was an already forming warp to catch him. Izuku growled, pushing off the ground. His foot met the man’s brace, diverting him from the path and crashing into the hard floor.

Izuku and Uraraka panted, waiting for the man to get up. He didn’t but Izuku was still on edge. Uraraka was a little more naive. She let out a sigh. “Good riddance!” Izuku nodded. “Let’s go check on Hagakure,” he stated. “Right!” Uraraka ran off. Izuku tried following before pain erupted in his back. He stumbled, just barely catching himself.

“Midoriya?” Uraraka looked up at him. He waved her. “I’m okay.” He’s okay. He’s delt with worse. Izuku met her beside the invisible girl. “I think she’s breathing,” Uraraka stated. Izuku nodded. “Watch over her, I am going to check out the situation.” The brunette’s eyes widened. “That’s dangerous!”

“I won’t join unless necessary,” he quipped before running to the edge of the stairs. Shouta may have his pokemon and he may be able to erase quirks but they have hundreds of pokemon and hundreds of quirks. Izuku  _ knew _ he couldn’t handle it alone. Crouching at the edge of the stairs, Izuku looked over into the arena. Shouta was doing surprisingly well but Izuku could see it. He was wearing down. One too many close calls. Umbreon got hit in the side, flying into Absol making the two stumble. Shouta went to cover them when a man with hands all over him stepped in the way. Izuku couldn’t see what happened, only the blood dripping. He had to fight the urge to jump down. Shouta kicked the man away just as Absol hit the handyman with a night slash. Good. Seviper must have been returned because Izuku didn’t see him anywhere. 

Movement at the water’s edge caught Izuku’s eyes. He had to squint but he made out the blurry figures of Hitoshi, Asui, Ash, and… Chip! Ah, Vaporeon made much more sense now. They were both still evolved. Izuku knew Chip saw him too. Too bad they couldn’t exactly do anything about that right now.

Handyman made a rush at the students, having seen them too. Shouta ran after him, arm out. That’s when  _ it _ came.  _ It _ was a giant, hulking figure with blackish skin and a giant beak and an exposed brain. It was like it teleported, appearing beside Shouta with a raised fist. Izuku habitually reached out but gasped in pain from his back falling back down.

* **BOOM** *

There was a cloud of dust, a scream, and then a grunt. Izuku waited in silence. Handyman thrown out of the dust by presumably Espurr’s psychic and halfway across the arena. When the dust cleared there was Asui, arm hanging limply by her side bleeding heavily, her other arm holding it. She looked ready to pass out. Then there was… Shouta. Shouta and a puddle of blood. Shouta and a puddle of blood and that hulking figure over him, hand pressing Shouta’s face to the ground.

Izuku saw red.

\-----

_ ‘Hey, kid.’ _

_ ‘- if you master that impossible ability of yours, I will put in a recommendation for you to take the recommendation exam.’ _

_ ‘I don’t know who broke theirs but I’m not the type of person, the type of adult who breaks their promises.’ _

_ ‘Why would I not come when I knew you would need me?’ _

_ ‘I’ll protect you.’ _

\-----

He doesn’t really register jumping down the stairs, feet barely tapping ever three steps. He doesn’t register the screams from his friends or the way Chip jumps out to join him. He doesn’t register the way Shouta lifts his head and tells him to stop.

\-----

_ ‘My Dad used to do this for me when I was younger and afraid or hurt too.’ _

\-----

“GET AWAY FROM HIM!”

Handyman rushes to meet him. He’s fast. Izuku needs to be faster. “Chip.” He’s already shifting to Jolteon. Handyman’s eyes widen as Izuku zips behind him and kicks him in the side. Handyman stumbles forward just in time to meet the thunderbolt Chip released. The man cries out, falling to his knees. “Nomu!”  _ Nomu? _ In a blur, the hulking man appears before him.  _ Ah. Nomu.  _ When the fist hits his stomach, Izuku blacks out.

Pain explodes from his ribs and from his back as he lands and skids across the floor. Handyman stumbles to his feet. “We’ll call the Symbol of Peace with his students blood,” he growled. “Nomu, kill him.”

____________________________

_ Get up, Shouta… _

Shouta tries. He really does. But the world spins and everything hurts. He can’t see beyond the blood in his eyes and the black invading his vision. The beast rushes again to Izuku with impossible speed but the boy is only looking at him. His eye gear had broken off in the initial hit and yet Shouta feels like Izuku can see him and only him with complete clarity.

“Espurr, psychic!” Hitoshi’s voice. Right, the kids in the water. The beast, Nomu, lights up a bit but his size and speed is too hard to control. Espurr manages only to shift the beast a bit off course but it’s enough. Izuku is blown over by the force. He plants his feet with precision that Shouta knows only comes from years of training and pushes off with his hand, crossing the distance at a fast rate. Shigaraki isn’t having it. He bolts towards Izuku. “Umbreon,” Shouta chokes out. The pokemon lifts its head, wounded on the ground. “Please,” Shouta begs, tears in his eyes.

“ _ Please save my son… _ ”

Umbreon opens his mouth and lets out a dark pulse. It’s weak but it is enough to throw Shigaraki off course. Izuku reaches out. “Shouta!” Shigaraki scowls. “Nomu.” Shouta’s black eyes widen. Despite the speed, Shouta sees it perfectly in slow motion. The way that massive fist appears behind the greenette. The way Izuku’s body seems to morph around the blow before flying across the room like a ragdoll. He cries out but it falls on deaf ears.

He thinks.

But Izuku is a force to be reckoned with. Chip shifts midair and in the Jolteon’s place stands a Leafeon. Izuku, now in green, throws out his vines as Chip throws out his own as well. They tangle around each other. “Leeeeafeon!” Ship swings the boy around. Izuku bullets towards the Nomu, lighting up in a glow that makes Shouta think Espurr is assisting the acceleration. His feet smash into the giant body with enough force to actually force him to stumble back a bit. Izuku flips, landing in front of Shouta, arm out protectively. “Izuk-”

“ **_Stay away from my Father_ ** .”

Shouta’s eyes widen. “Izuku…” The boy’s bleeding heavily from the head and his white clothes are starting to turn red around his ribs. His arm is twitching violently already, emotions and time limit threatening a seizure. Nomu moves again. “Stop,” Shigaraki held out a hand. “That boy… That Eevee… We need them alive.”  _ What? _

* **!!!BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!** * The door to the USJ is blown open. All Might and Tyranitar stand boldly at the top of the stairs. “DO NOT FEAR FOR  **I AM HERE!** ” Shouta could have cried of relief until Izuku leg jerked out from beneath him. With one last burst of strength, Shouta pushed his leg under himself and jumped forward, arms out, just catching the greenette before his head hit the ground. They both toppled to the floor groaning in pain. An arm hit him in the chest though not willingly. At Chip’s cry, Shouta knew they went well over their time. As Izuku spasmed before him, crying out in pain and in shock as his injuries were agitated due to the sporadic movements, Shouta could do nothing to help. His mind was loose, pain fading to the background. The sounds of the fight between All Might, Tyranitar, Shigaraki, and Nomu is muffled in his ears. Rationally, Shouta knows he needs to stay awake.

He doesn’t.

____________________________

Izuku’s consciousness comes in flashes. At one point he is being carried somewhere. A flash of a hospital room, the beeping of a heart monitor. A car ride through dusty roads. A house. Darkness. A basement. For the next few times it is always the basement but most of it he doesn’t remember. He remembers one thing, though.

A man. Curly black hair and black eyes sitting beside his bed. He reaches over and takes something off of Izuku’s head. The sound of splashing water and a towel being rung out before it is placed back over his forehead. A hand in his hair. A Houndoom by his side, warmth radiating from it, warming the usually cold basement. A sad sigh. And then… black again.

When he wakes up the next time, Izuku is more aware. He blinks up at the ceiling of the basement with tired eyes. It’s cold but that’s not new. Izuku is used to the cold temperatures of the basement by now. He pushes himself up. There is a bit of tightness in his chest and some pain but not much. “Eevee?” Chip looks up from his resting position. Izuku blinks. “Ch- * **COUGH COUGH COUGH** *!” His throat is so dry. The pokemon scrambles to his paws worriedly. Izuku tries his best to smile and tell him that he is okay but it ends in another coughing fit. Patting Chip’s head, Izuku decides he should probably get some water and use the bathroom. He goes to the  _ kitchen  _ first, needing to quell this pain in his throat, then to the  _ bathroom _ next. Such a small task and yet it takes so much out of him that when Izuku pushes his  _ bedroom door _ open, he all but collapses on his bed. He is just drifting to sleep when-

“Shouta!” Izuku jumps up, head spinning. Suddenly, images are rebounding. A lot is a blur from the time he saw Shouta’s head get smashed in to now. There was just a lot of pain and dust and then that man with the hands and Nomu. Izuku’s heart slams in his chest.  _ What happened to Shouta? Is he okay? He’s okay right? Shouta has to be okay! _ “Eevee,” Chip settles in his lap. Izuku looks down at the pokemon. “Ch- Chip,” tears his eyes, “Sh- Shouta is-” The Eevee nods without even having to hear the rest of the question.

Izuku lets out a strangled sob, clasping his pokemon tightly. “Thank goodness…” He soon passes out again from exhaustion. 

When he wakes again, Chip leads Izuku to the  _ dining room _ where he finds two cans of spaghetti loops on the  _ table _ . Izuku’s stomach rolls. He doesn’t question it. The boy immediately runs behind the workout equipment to the  _ kitchen  _ and pulls out the cup before settling back in the  _ dining room _ again by the  _ table _ . Izuku divides one can between him and Chip, saving the other one for a later date. It was cold and yet it was so good!

It definitely wasn’t some old, moldy protein bar.

Their time in the basement was quiet, Chip demanding Izuku take it easy. And, oh, you bet he does. It’s hard to relax too much with his hard bed and stiff pillow, especially when it is always cold and he only has a thin sheet but Izuku makes do. He sleeps. A lot. He draws. A lot. And he reads. A lot.

All is good until he hears the tale-tale sound of the metal door to his house open. Izuku gets out of bed and opens his  _ door _ , looking out. Mr. Midoriya comes down the stairs, face neutral. He doesn’t cross the distance or anything, seeing that Izuku is already  _ looking out _ of his  _ bedroom _ . “Time for school.” School? Mr. Midoriya leaves. _ That’s it? Dang, what time is it? _ Izuku is quick to get dressed, but also careful to not get too dizzy. Mr. Midoriya doesn’t really say anything when he leaves. It’s strange but Izuku doesn’t have time to worry about it.

All the way to school he is a jittery mess. Sure, Chip  _ said _ that Shouta was okay but was he  _ really _ ? Izuku needed to know if-

“Hey, kid.”

Izuku came to a screeching halt, stopping outside of UA’s gates. There he was, standing in front of the gates like always. Hobo clothing, hobo hair, a bandage under his right eye. There he was… Tears filled Izuku’s green eyes. “Shou- ta,” his voice cracked. The raven-haired man silently held out his arms. It didn’t take long for Izuku and Chip to cross the distance and all but tackle the man. 

____________________________

“Woah, there!” 

Shouta stumbled back a bit. Izuku and Chip clung to him like glue. He smiled softly, patting the greenette on the head. His kid was back. _His_ _kid_ was safe. “Glad to see you back.” Izuku sniffed. “Y- y- you’re okay,” he whispered. Shouta hummed. “I’m oka-”

“Shouta’s okay,” the man paused. Izuku had gone rigid. “Shouta’s okay. It’s okay. Everything is okay.” “Hey, kid…” “Okay… OkAy.” Izuku looked up finally, something dark, frightening in his eyes. “Shouta’s okay!”

Shouta didn’t know what to respond. This wasn’t normal. It was obvious that he was so why was Izuku saying all of this? Shouta knelt down, taking the boy by the shoulders. “Are  _ you _ okay?” he asked instead because he really didn’t think Izuku was. Viridian eyes turned confused before they lit up. “Of course!”

\-----

_ ‘Shouta, it’s okay, right?’ _

_ ‘Of course.’ _

\-----

For days Shouta questioned that question, the context and the reasoning behind it. He questioned if the answer he gave that day was the correct answer to give. Only now, as Izuku and Chip strolled into the school with some sort of hypnotic, glazed-over look in their eyes, did Shouta realize that his answer was not the correct answer.

It was so, so wrong.

____________________________

Izuku leaned against Shouta’s arm as they sat in the teacher’s lounge, the laptop in his lap as he read over his first assignment for his design course.

According to Shouta, Izuku had been out for a day longer than everyone else. There was already the weekend and then they called out school on Monday, Izuku was still out on Tuesday, so today was Wednesday. There were quite a few injuries including himself, Shouta, Asui, Hagakure, Thirteen, and Kaminari. Aside from him and Shouta, Asui’’s was the worst, having to undergo reparative surgery on her arm. She’d experience a dull in senses in that arm and have a large scar for the rest of her life. All Might had come and subdued the villains shortly after Izuku had joined the fray. Sort of sucks. Izuku would have liked to see him fight in person.

“Hey there, little listener,” Izuku tensed. Present Mic leaned over the back of the couch. “Hard at work already?” He had options. Izuku could have completely ignored the man like always. He could glare at him or scowl or do anything to show the man he did not like his presence but… Present Mic did this for him. He got Izuku enrolled in a class that probably wasn’t cheap and was even letting Izuku use his laptop for it. Izuku was… grateful. He didn’t  _ want _ to ignore the existence of this man anymore so instead he nodded against Shouta’s arm, letting out a confirmation hum. Present Mic grinned. “Nice! There will probably be some assignments requiring you to make something or actually practice sewing and the like so when those come up just come to me, okay?”

Izuku finally looked up at the man, eyes wide. He would really do that for him? Present Mic grinned wider, giving a small wave before leaving to his desk. He heard Midnight huff, “You’re stealing my time with the kid,” she pouted but Izuku would ignore that. Adults actively trying to get close to him and be nice? Doubtful. “So Yamada’s not completely, ultra, super duper evil,” Shouta joked. Izuku blushed. “Shut up…”

Doubtful but… not impossible?

____________________________

“An Eevee that changed evolutions multiple times?”

“Yes.”

“Three legs?”

“Yes.”

“And you said that his trainer changed with him?”

“Yes, sensei.”

All For One chuckled darkly into the dark room. “Oh, X13…” He grinned.

“ **Found you.** ”


	13. Parents Don't Exist

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I don't really have a good description for this one. Sorry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone doing?

* **BAM** *

Izuku hit the ground hard. He gasped for air, body aching everywhere. Above him, Mr. Midoriya huffed. “Look at you. Already out of breath? This is why you kept coming back in bandages. You’re pathetic.”  _ I know… _ “Even Inha’s stronger than you.” Viridian eyes widened. “I should just train her ins-” “NO!” Izuku screeched, Pushing himself up. Mr. Midoriya scowled. “No? What’s the point of training someone so weak that they can’t even stand?” Izuku got his foot under him. “I- I can stand.” The man smirked. “If you aren’t on your feet in five seconds I’ll bring Inha down here.” His heart dropped.

Everything hurt. His body cried out, begging him to stop. All of his muscles felt like they were going to tear apart. He was dizzy and tired and would have liked nothing more than to fall asleep and never wake up. And yet, with much pain, Izuku forced himself to his feet. He swayed, the world spinning around him. He felt like he would throw up. He didn’t. He planted his right foot behind him to stabilize himself and lifted his head, eyes heavy with exhaustion. “I- I can st- st- still stand.”

Mr. Midoriya grinned. “You’ve saved her another day. What a hero.” Flames licked at his tongue. “Shall we continue.” Izuku swallowed.

All to save her another day.

____________________________

“Ka- Ah- Erm- Midnight,” Shouta and every single head in the teacher’s lounge turned in shock because while most of the teachers don’t interact with Izuku personally, they were all certainly aware of why he was here and his position and to hear him almost call Nemuri by her name, well, it was a sight to see. The woman stood from her desk, making her way to the green-haired boy who was now nibbling on his fingernail with his eyebrows furrowed, obviously confused at himself for calling to her in that way.

“You can call me Kayama, Midoriya,” she reassured him. “Heck, I wouldn’t mind if you call me Nemuri! What did you need?” Izuku glanced up at her warily. Why  _ did _ he call her that? Or almost, at least. 

Shouta could see the contemplation in Izuku’s eyes and it wasn’t fear of Nemuri, it was fear of himself and fear of what would happen if he got much closer to her. Relying and trusting adults was such a foreign concept to the boy and the pressure to hide his home life literally forced him to not trust them so calling Nemuri by name, even just the last name, was a feat in itself. Shouta is overjoyed that Izuku is starting to open up to his friends but he knows that something like this could cause serious turmoil in Izuku’s already fragile mind and if the boy forces himself to push her away because he realizes that his home life might be discovered then he will begin to look at Shouta in the same light. Izuku has a very step-by-step, to the point personality so it would be natural for him to digress in that way.

It’s what makes Shouta worried about his Mother coming to visit next week. He very much wants the two to at least meet, he thinks it would be beneficial to see how a good mother raised Shouta to be a good person, or at least how a good parent looks in general. Shouta knows that Izuku doesn’t remember a lot of the USJ fight, he admitted to having a minor concussion that day but still coming to school. However, as much as it hurts Shouta’s heart, that means Izuku doesn’t remember accidentally calling Shouta his father. The feelings may still be there but because Izuku hasn’t completely accepted that idea yet, or not enough to say it out loud when he is in a good state of mind, he doesn’t reference Shouta’s actions as parental yet so he wants Izuku to have a reference of good parenting.

Shouta watches as Nemuri coaxes Izuku into speaking after his little slip-up. He can’t help but think that she would be a good mother for the boy. Shouta questions himself for being a good potential father if they are able to get Izuku out of his situation. He questions if maybe it would be better for Izuku to live with Nemuri instead or if he could try and pursue a relationship with the woman. He used to think about it before Shirakumo died… He used to think of a lot of things. He may have seemed apathetic as a teen but Shouta was still a boy and he did think about dating, perhaps marrying a nice girl and having a family. But Shirakumo died just two years after Shouta’s own father died. Dad dying made Shouta question pursuing close relationships whether they be friends or more. Shirakumo dying made him scared of pursuing relationships. After almost seventeen years later, aside from Nemuri and Hizashi who were there when Shirakumo died, Izuku is the first person he has actively tried to get close to and it was a father/son relationship he was chasing.

The raven-haired man shakes his head, leaving the teacher’s lounge to go get the papers he left in the classroom.

\-----

_ ‘Worry, worry, worry Shouta, that is all you do,’ Mom griped over the phone. ‘You need to find yourself a nice woman and settle down!’ _

\-----

A conversation from many years ago. Why was it resurfacing now? Was he really that bad? Just as he was nearing the teacher’s lounge again, Nemuri exited, stretching her arms over her head. “What did he need?” Shouta asked, feeling a bit strange after his most recent line of thought. Nemuri strode over. “His classes were asking what line of fashion he wanted to design and he was debating on either wedding dresses or performer costumes.” Shouta blinked. “He came to you with a life decision.” Nemuri tilted her head. “Huh. I guess he did.” She smiled. “Well, I’ve got to set up the visual for morning class.” She waved, passing him. Shouta nodded, opening the door to the teacher’s lounge. He saw Izuku on the couch. It was small and just light enough it almost couldn’t be seen but there was a bruise under the collar of the boy’s shirt.  _ It would do Izuku good to have a mother figure… _

Shouta took a deep breath and turned around, sprinting down the hallway. He turned the corner. “Nemuri,” he called out. The woman stopped, looking back at him. For years, Shouta has been afraid to pursue a relationship with anyone but if he had a choice, if he had a chance with anyone, if he wanted to be with any girl… it would be her.

“This Saturday. How would you feel about dinner?” He saw the way the R-rated heroines eyes widened before a smile graced her lips. “This Saturday sounds great.” And she walked off leaving a stunned Shouta. He didn’t expect her to say yes. Who would say yes to Shouta of all people? After all, in Izuku’s own words, he is a very hobo-like man. And yet… she did. Shouta straightened up a bit. He won’t get flustered. It’s irrational. But he will admit he is a bit excited.

The raven-haired man turned around and walked back to the teacher’s lounge. “You look happy,” Izuku commented. Shouta paused. He is sure he still has the same monotone face as always. Viridian eyes lit up playfully. “What? You think I’m blind?” Shouta smirked, reaching down and flicking the boy on the head. “With those eyes it wouldn’t surprise me.” Izuku rolled ‘those eyes.’ Shouta went back to his desk, sitting.

\-----

_ ‘You look happy.’ _

\-----

It’s time Aizawa Shouta did some healing of his own.

____________________________

Nemuri entered her classroom and closed the door. She leaned back against it, processing what just happened. Shouta just asked her out.  _ Shouta _ just asked her out. She turns her teal eyes to the ceiling. She couldn’t help the singular tear that rolled down her cheek.

For years she has watched Shouta tear himself down over what happened to Shirakumo. For years he has been so guarded. He never gets past ‘hello’ to anyone. When Nemuri first heard about this Midoriya boy, she was surprised that Shouta was going so far for some kid three hours away that, at that point, he couldn’t be one hundred percent sure was being abused. Over the two years Shouta has known Midoriya, Nemuri and Hizashi have both noticed the growth the man has gone through. Shouta is more open. He is less harsh on his students and more interactive with his colleagues.

Yes, Nemuri has asked Shouta out before. She knows very well that her costume was her choice but even in her much more modest civilian garb, men only look at her for her body. Shouta was never like that. He was always ‘rational’ and never materialistic and Nemuri liked that. But during the times she has tried to go beyond friendship with him, Shouta was always guarded. He’s scared of close relationships with others, afraid of losing them and afraid of making a mistake. It is ‘irrational’ to him. But since meeting Izuku? He’s changed for the better Nemuri thinks. The smile he lost after Shirakumo’s death is returning and he is becoming more bold again. She walks over to her desk to prepare the visual. A few more tears drop.

_ Thank you, Izuku, for bringing the old Shouta back. _

____________________________

“The UA Sports Festival is coming up in three weeks,” Shouta announced. The class immediately exploded in whoops and hollers. Izuku smirked. He leaned his head back, looking at Hitoshi upside down. His glasses slipped a little so instead he was greeted with a purple and tan blob that was slightly lighter than normal. He’s noticed everything without his glasses, and even a bit with them, has been growing lighter and lighter by the week, making things more foggy than usual. Nothing he isn’t used to.

“The Sports Festival, huh?” Hitoshi smirks. “I do believe it is time to show the world what we are made of, huh?” Izuku blinked. The world… Right this was broadcasted. Viridian eyes widened. He jolted back up, hands slamming on his desk just as Shouta started to speak again.

“The school wants to show that a few petty villains can’t stop us,” the raven-haired man stated. “The UA SportsFestival has taken place of the Olympics which was the most viewed sports event in the prequirk era’s, before the human body mutated to bond with pokemon. Many pro heroes will be there to scout you. You have three chances, once each year, to prove yourself. Don’t miss this chance.”

The whole world will be watching.  _ Mr. Midoriya  _ would be watching. Mr. Midoriya  _ doesn’t know Izuku and Chip’s power _ . All of the blood drained from his face. This  _ can’t _ be happening. Izuku raised his hand. “S- Sensei,” his voice shook, “may I use the bathroom?” He never asks. He usually just stands, gives a brief notice, and goes because screw what the authorities think but right now he was too shaken. Izuku’s arm jerked, forcing him to put it back down, hitting ht table painfully as it dropped. Shouta took one look at his viridian eyes and his own black widened. “Be back soon.” Izuku all but bolted out of the room.

_ NonononononononoNO! _

Izuku knocked his arm on the corner of the bathroom, his training from last night making itself known. Gasping in pain, Izuku flailed, toppling into the bathroom and falling to his knees. He panted, arms wrapping around himself, fingernails digging into his clothing.

It’s falling apart. What will Mr. Midoriya do when he finds out? What should he do? How can he stop this?! Should he go quirkless? He and Chip could always do that but they will be at a massive disadvantage. Either way, being on screen will be bad. Too many chances to be found out. Too many chances for Mr. Midoriya to take hold of and go after his friends. Too many things to go wrong!

Izuku’s body suddenly jolted. He doubled over, forehead pressing into the hard ground. He couldn’t breathe! His heart threatened to beat right out of his chest. Izuku squeezed his eyes shut as his leg spasmed out from under him.  _ Someone… help…  _

____________________________

* **Ding Ding** *

Hizashi pulled out his phone.

  
  


**!!!!!Shouta!!!!!:**

Are you free right now?

**HIZASHI:**

Yuppers!

**!!!!!Shouta!!!!!:**

Sorry but can you go to the bathroom on the hero course floor.

Izuku’s having a panic attack in there.

  
  
  


Hizashi’s eyes widened.  _ Shouta wants me to calm him?! Won’t I just make it worse? _

  
  
  


**HIZASHI:**

Sure thing!

  
  
  


Well, he is sure Shouta knows what he is doing. The blonde took off down the hallway. 

Truth is, Hizashi was busy, he was grading papers while his homeroom class played a game since there wasn’t a lot to do during homeroom. But Shouta doesn’t ask for much, a man frightened of being a burden though you wouldn’t know it by looking at him. It was all a downward spiral after Shirakumo died. So when he texted asking if Hizashi was busy, the man was inclined to reply. He wanted to support his depressed friend as much as possible. If helping Shouta’s kid out helps then he will gladly stay up late tonight to finish grading.

Before he even entered the bathroom he heard the erratic breathing. Hizashi skirted into the bathroom and sure enough, there was Midoriya on the floor and, oh, he’s having a spasm. Quick as a whip, Hizashi slid to the floor beside the jerking boy, removing his leather jacket. “Hey, little listener, hold on.” He folded the jacket and, dodging an arm, lifted the greenette’s head, sliding the jacket beneath it. He turned the boy on his side. “I need you to breathe with me,” disoriented green eyes shot to him, tears streaming from them as the boy struggled for air. Hizashi grit his teeth.  _ Dang _ . “Everything is okay, you will be fine. Take a deep breath with me.” He tried his best to exaggerate his movements because it was unsafe to touch a person mid-seizure. “In and out.” Midoriya’s head jerked back, banging against the wall of the stall. Hizashi cursed, taking the risk to pull the boy to a more open area of the bathroom. Midoriya made a strange sound, sort of like a strangled animal. “No, no, no, breathe, not choke. IN. OUT. In. Out. In. Out.”

After what felt like forever but was probably no longer than a minute and a half, Midoriya took his first deep, though shaky, breath. His body had begun to settle as well, only small jerks from his right arm and leg. “In…” Hizashi continued. “Out…”

“-ay…” Hizashi blinked, leaning in closer. “Hmm?” “Okay…” the little listener whispered louder. “It’s okay… It’s okay… Everything is okay…” Hizashi leaned back, eyebrow lifting. “Yes…?” A chuckle bubbled from the boy’s lips. “Okay. Okay. Okay. Everything is okay.” Viridian eyes flitted to Hizashi, the crazed look and split-face grin sending a shiver down the man’s back. “OkAy! It’s Okay!” His blood ran cold. The yellow-haired man’s attention was drawn back to Midoriya when the boy suddenly choked on a sob, curling in on himself. “Okay… Okay…”

Hizashi’s heart broke. He knows that this boy doesn’t like him all that much but he thinks they have gotten closer a bit. He shuffled his arms under the boy and lifted him, draping his jacket over his own shoulder. Hizashi’s eyes widened as he stumbled back against the bathroom wall having expected Midoriya to way more. Like, A LOT more.

Midoriya’s eyes snapped up to him. The boy went rigid. “M- M- Mr.-” “Nope!” Hizashi put on a big grin, the same he uses on frighten civilians. “Present Mic,” he stated, walking out of the bathroom. “Say it with me. ‘Pres-ent-Mic!’” Midoriya’s body shook as he tried to mouth the words. Hizashi nodded, going down the stairs. “Almost! Prrrresssssent Miiiiic.” He want all the way to the level with the teacher’s lounge. He’d text Shouta later informing him of where Midoriya is. “P- P- Pres…” “Presssss?” Midoriya took a shaky breath. “P- Present M- M- Mic…” Hizashi grinned. “That’s it!” He used his foot to kick open the teacher’s lounge door. “See, everything is okay!” Midoriya nodded, frightened eyes still glued to him. He had yet to completely calm down, more like a plank in Hizashi’s arms, staying still out of fear. Hizashi swallowed a sigh. He really wasn’t the right one to handle Midoriya.

“One moment!” He set the boy down on the couch, Midoriya immediately curling in on himself. 

Hizashi slid on his jacket and ran off to the teacher’s lounge storeroom. He opened it and looked around.  _ Shouta should have an extra in here… Ah ha! _ His lime eyes landed on the yellow sleeping bag. Hizashi drew it from the room and closed the door behind him. He walked back over to Midoriya and displayed it to the boy. “Here we are! A one- or like eighty -of a kind, Aizawa Shouta sleeping bag!” Viridian eyes blinked, confused. Hizashi rolled his eyes and unzipped it. “You sleep in it. Just snuggle in and zip up. Shouta sleeps in these all of the time.” He sets in in the boy’s lap. “Don’t worry, I’ll tell him that you are okay. Just get some shut eye, erm,” Hizashi rushes to his desk and pulls out the boy’s laptop and sketchbook, running back quickly, “do this!” He sets it down on the table. With a wink, Hizashi turns to go back to his homeroom.

“ **Y- you… aren’t going to hurt me…?** ”

The yellow-haired man’s foot froze midair. He looked over his shoulder. “What?” Lime eyes looked into viridian, not really meeting as he had his sunglasses on. Midoriya was still shaken up, he wouldn’t have asked something so revealing if he wasn’t. Something in the back of his mind told him to record this but when he met the confusion in those eyes his brain came to a halt. Hizashi turned around and took long strides towards the boy. He ripped off his sunglasses and pocketed them. He crouched before the boy, placing his hands on the boy’s knees. Lime eyes met viridian and Hizashi made sure to make and keep the eye contact.

“My name is Yamada HiZashi,” he stated boldly, “not Midoriya HiSashi. And I will  _ never  _ hurt you. If I ever  _ do  _ hurt you it is not on purpose. I don’t know what you see when you see me but please realize this. I am not that man and I never will be. Okay?”

Something flickered in Midoriya’s eyes. He nodded shakily. “Okay…”

Hizashi blinked.  _ Okay? Just like that? _

_ \----- _

_ ‘Okay. Okay. Okay. Everything is okay.’ _

_ \----- _

That word. It was that word. Something dark swirled in Hizashi’s chest. _That’s… not normal._ Still, he grinned and patted the boy’s leg. “I’ll tell Shouta where you are at.” He stood and made to leave the room. “-ay…” Hizashi’s hand froze on the door. His body went stiff, eyes directing behind him but body staying forward as again the mantra started. “Okay… Okay… Everything is okay…” Hizashi slid open the door and exited, closing it as quickly as possible without slamming it. He moved to the side, back hitting the wall, hand covering his mouth. _I’m going to throw up._ _That Isn’t NoRmAL._ He shook his head and whipped out his phone, walking back to his homeroom.

  
  
  


**HIZASHI:**

He is resting in the teacher’s lounge.

**!!!!!Shouta!!!!!:**

Thank you.

I’ll make sure to have him up by your class.

  
  
  


Hizashi bit his tongue. He typed the question hoping that Shouta would understand.

  
  
  


**HIZASHI:**

Shouta, what is ‘okay’?

…

…

…

**!!!!!Shouta!!!!!:**

Did he ask you?

  
  
  


Ah. So Shouta did understand.

  
  
  


**HIZASHI:**

Yeah.

**!!!!!Shouta!!!!!:**

What did you reply?

**HISASHI:**

Yes?

…

…

…

**!!!!!Shouta!!!!!:**

Suck.

  
  
  
  


Hizashi paled. Midoriya’s crazed expression flashed in his mind.  _ THAT ISN’T NORMAL. _

____________________________

Shouta ran a hand through his hair as he made his way back to the teacher’s lounge after homeroom. He’s a bit contemplative about Izuku having an anxiety attack. He’s glad the kid got himself out in time before he had probably a spam in class but he also hates the fact that Izuku is so familiar with them that he knows when they are coming. Shouta can’t help but curse at Mr. Midoriya in his head. He’s three hours away and yet it feels like he is walking the halls of this school stalking the greenette. The oppression he exerts on Izuku is terrifying. 

“Shouta…” He looks up. Hizashi is waiting for him outside of the teacher’s lounge. “Hizashi, what’s wrong? You look sick.” The blonde looked up at him. He looked so terrified and desperate. “ _ What does it mean, Shouta _ ?” The raven-haired man stopped. He narrowed his eyes. “Hizashi, what happened?” The man shook his head. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “I just- Shouta it wasn’t normal. It was like he was possessed or something. He kept saying that over and over again like it was some kind of magic spell with that creepy smile on his face and crazed eyes like some feral animal! He asked me if I was going to hurt him, Shouta.” Shouta took a sharp breath. “I of course told him I wouldn’t but then he just started up again! Shouta, what does ‘ _ okay _ ’ mean?!” 

Shouta looked up at the ceiling. He took a few deep breaths but his chest shook with the force. He tried to force back the tears but a couple escaped. “I don’t know,” he whispered. “Hizashi, I couldn’t tell you even if I tried.” Shouta’s fists shook at his sides. “He’s getting worse. Izuku can’t even make it through the school day without some sort of attack. I can’t help him, Hizashi,” Shouta looked at his friend, allowing that little bit of emotion into his voice. “Every day I can see it. For two years! That man is killing him, Hizashi! If not physically then what he is doing to Izuku’s mind! He’s killing him and I can’t do anything to stop it!” Hizashi lurched forward. Black eyes widened as he was trapped in a tight hug.

“Shouta, don’t say that,” the yellow-haired man’s voice shook. “Midoriya isn’t dying. We are going to get him out of there.” Shouta grit his teeth. “And what will it take?” he hissed. “It will take Izuku’s mind breaking completely until he mentally can no longer handle being in that house without going insane. You’ve seen it, Hizashi. He’s unstable. How can I say I saved him if when we finally get him out he isn’t even the same person? How can we say that if he isn’t even sane!”

Hizashi stepped back and took Shouta by the shoulders. “Shouta, stop. It’s not going to get to that point and I’ll tell you why.” He jabbed a finger to Shouta’s chest. “Because you, and I, and Nemuri, none of us are going to let it get to that point. By the time he finally comes to us about it Izuku may very well be falling apart but he most likely would have fallen apart much earlier if he hadn't met you.  _ You _ are keeping him together and you will continue to keep him together. We won’t let him fall apart and when he finally comes to us, by that time we just have to hope that the bonds we’ve made with him are enough to keep him from falling apart. But until that time comes you can’t give up on him, Shouta. Midoriya needs you. If you drop him now,” Shouta’s eye twitched, “I don’t think he can be repaired.”

Shouta scowled. “Do you  _ really _ think I’d  _ ever _ give up on my  _ son _ ?” Hizashi chuckled, letting go of him. “Of course not. I’m just giving you a warning. Be careful with that boy, Shouta. His mind and heart can’t take much more.” With a pat on the shoulder, Hizashi left to teach English. Shouta hung his head.

\-----

_ ‘His mind and heart can’t take much more.’ _

\-----

_ I know, _ Shouta held back a few more tears.  _ I know… _

Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Shouta entered the teacher’s lounge. The lights were off? The only teacher in here was Cementoss. He was quiet so Izuku probably didn’t even know he was in here. The man nodded to him, offering a smile. Shouta waved his thanks for the silence and for keeping the lights off. He looked around. At first, the raven-haired man didn’t see Izuku. He saw the boy’s glasses on the coffee table on top of his laptop and his sleeping bag on the couch which shouldn’t be out but that was all. Shouta went over to the couch where Izuku usually sleeps. Looking down at the laptop, he couldn’t help but smile. Every day Izuku used it there were two more sticky notes on top. One would be from Hizashi which he would write in response to the other one which was one from Izuku. They were having a little conversation on it or something. By now, sticky notes were starting to overlap. Shouta turned around to pick up his sleeping bag and almost had a heart attack right then and there when he saw Izuku’s face poking out from the hole and Chip’s ears on either side of his face, the pokemon presumably inside the bag. Shouta covered his mouth.

Izuku sleeping in his sleeping bag… It was so cute! Shouta didn’t take himself for the doting father who takes pictures of their children but right then and there he couldn’t help but snap a photo. Shouta looked at the picture for a second before his head shot up. The boy was… crying. It was so light and so quiet that Shouta had even realized it! His heart twisted in his chest. Shouta knelt by the couch. He carefully reached over and gently wiped away a few of the tears. Viridian eyes fluttered open. As always, Shotua moved his hand to cover the boy’s eyes. It hurt knowing that Izuku may never be able to look at him without seeing Mr. Midoriya’s for the first few seconds but he knew the boy couldn’t help it. It was just a testimony to how crushing the weight of Mr. Midoriya was on the boy.

“Shouta…?” Izuku hummed. Shouta removed his hand, now wet from tears that the boy probably didn’t even realize he was shedding. “Yeah, it’s me.” Chip rustled in the bag before poking his head out, rainbow eyes flashing at the raven-haired man. “Wanna talk about it?”

With a little maneuvering, Izuku unzipped himself and Chip halfway from the bag and sat up but kept his legs in it and it pulled around his shoulders. Chip curled up on the boy’s lap. Shouta took a moment to revel in how Izuku, though he knows it won’t be the whole story or even not enough for evidence, is willing to be open enough with him as to at least admit this much. Shouta sat on the couch beside the boy who immediately leaned over on his shoulder. It took a good minute of silence for Izuku to speak.

“Some people don’t know…” he whispered. “Don’t know?” The greenette nodded. “The Sports Festival is going to be broadcasted and s- some people don’t know what me and Chip can do.” Shouta blinked once. Twice. And then- “Ah, that makes sense. Mind if I ask why they don’t know?” Izuku glared at the ground as though it personally offended him. Shouta swallowed a sigh. He reached around the boy and ran his fingers through those green locks, simultaneously pulling Izuku closer. “Don’t worry. You know that if anything happens you can always call me.” Izuku had begun to relax against him so he continued to run his fingers through the boy’s hair. “Nothing happens…” Izuku murmured. “Really?” “...” Shouta sighed. He took a deep breath.

“Go to sleep, Izuku,” he whispered sadly. “I’ll wake you up before second period.”

And Izuku did. Shouta knows that as a teacher he should be making the boy go back to class but as an adult, not even as a father, as an adult he cannot simply force a child to go back when he is like this. It’s his job to guide the younger generation and to raise them up. It’s a shame that all of the previous adults in Izuku’s life didn’t do that in quite the right way.

“Shouta…” Shouta looked down. “Hmm?” “Shou… ta…” His heart twisted. Even Cementoss looked up with a sad expression. Izuku’s asleep. He’s defenseless and when people are at their most defenseless they don’t think about having to protect secrets. “Shouta…” Izuku’s defenseless. He’s crying out for help because at the end of the day, behind all of the pain and false confidence, that’s what he wants. He wants out. He wants help. Tears filled Shouta’s eyes.

\-----

_ ‘His mind and heart can’t take much more.’ _

\-----

Shout looked to the sky.  _ If anyone is up there… Please… I just need a little more evidence…  _

“Shou… ta…”

The tears rolled down his face.

_ Please... _

____________________________

“Should we wake them?”

“Nah.”

“He has class.”

“They both have class.”

“But they look so peaceful…”

“You know Nedzu will allow it.”

“Let’s just take a picture for safe keeping.”

* **SNAP** *

“Awww…”

“I’m so making fun of him for this later.”

____________________________

Shouta feels Izuku wake up before he awakens himself, still groggy from sleeping outside of his usual schedule. The boy stands, a blanket slipping off of the two of them. When that was placed on them he doesn’t know. He feels hands on his shoulders, oh so gently guiding him down. Just about to open his eyes, Shouta stops when he hears:

“It’s okay,” Izuku whispers, putting Shouta’s legs up on the couch. “You’ll be okay,” the blanket is draped over him. Shouta feels a shaky hand on his head. “I won’t let him hurt you either.”

Shouta’s heart drops as he hears the retreating footsteps and the teacher’s lounge door closing. He sits up, blanket off his shoulders. He stares down at his hands in shock. He slowly raises his head. A few of the teachers that are in the room are staring at him in shock too. With a heavy tongue, Shouta has to ask.

“I know… he is being blackmailed at home for the life of his sister but…” tears fill Shouta’s eyes, “would it be possible that I’m being used as a weapon against Izuku too…?”

No one answered.

____________________________

“Ah! Over here, Midoriya!”

Izuku flinches. That name… He hates it. It feels like being physically shot in the heart.  _ Not Midoriya. Not Midoriya. Not Midoriya. It’s okay. _ Izuku makes his way through the lunch room and sits beside Ash. “Where did you disappear to?” Hitoshi questioned. Izuku shrugged. “Went to use the bathroom and Principal Nedzu was walking by. We had a discussion about my living three hours away. Nothing really changed though.”

The lie rolls way too easily off his tongue. Way too easily is it accepted as well.

“Makes sense.” Izuku hummed. Todoroki kicked his leg under the table again. Izuku couldn’t help but smile a bit as the bi-colored boy slid over a bit of food for him again. Izuku looked up. He hopes his eyes are enough to express his gratitude. They are. Todoroki offers a rare smile back.

“Midoriya! You’re back!” Izuku grips his pants. He really needs to calm down. He can make it through the day. He can suck it up.  _ Just remember. Not Midoriya. Izuku is okay. _ Uraraka trots up. “Mind if I sit?” Ash and Hitoshi scoot over so Izuku can make room.

After their little… mishap with the training exercise, Izuku and Uraraka had gotten a bit closer. He sort of feels bad now after how poorly he treated her at the beginning of the year. Shouta says he has a bad habit of judging people too fast or of just not daring to judge at all instead choosing not to try in the first place.

\-----

_ ‘I know you are scared of getting hurt but you can’t live a life full of what if’s. Try and make a new friend. It may surprise you that they aren’t as bad as you think.’ _

\-----

He hates to admit it but just this once Shouta was right.

“Are you guys excited for the Sports Festival?” Uraraka asked. Izuku bit his tongue, choosing to stay silent. “Totally!” Ash punched the air. “Me and Pikachu are gonna blow the crowd away! We’re coming, hero world!” Izuku hummed noncommittally. When he looked up, he and Todoroki met eyes again. Something about it told them that they were thinking the same thing. It was different. Izuku was more scared and Todoroki was more angry about the festival but they both had misgivings about it. He tried to give a smile but it fell short.

“We should set up an after school meet up to train,” Todoroki suggested. At first, Izuku was confused as to why he of all people would mention it but then Izuku thought,  _ Ah, he doesn’t want to be home either _ . “Ooooh, sounds good!” Uraraka piped. “Oh, but don’t you already get home late, Midoriya.” Izuku hummed again. “It’ll be okay. I can come.” Todoroki blinked.

After lunch, he and Todoroki made their way back to class a bit behind the others. “How are you so confident that your guardian will let you come?” the boy asks. Izuku huffs. “I don’t ask for permission. He can’t do anything to me while I’m out of the house.” “Won’t it be worse once you return?” Todoroki presses. Izuku purses his lips. “Yeah but since when is it ‘good’?” Todoroki hums. “I wish I could be as bold as you towards my sperm donor.” Izuku snorted. “I don’t know if I’d call it that,” he mumbles. “Hmm?” “Nothing.”

Izuku feels something lingering in the back of his head. ‘Insanity’ perhaps that has driven him to be ‘this bold towards his tormentor.’ He knows. He can feel it bubbling in him, threatening to spill over. He wants to let it. He wants to scream and yell and cry but then other days he wants to just… not exist. Be in the void, never to be seen by the world ever again. He wants to give the world a taste of his pain but not let them see how truly weak he is.

He wants it to stop…

\-----

_ ‘E- everything will be okay, M- Mommy,’ he whispers. ‘Everything w- will be ok-’ _

_ ‘Make it stop…’ she begs. _

_ Izuku’s face spreads into a smile, the only thing he knows to do. ‘I- it’s okay, Mommy. It’s okay.’ _

\-----

It never stops.

He attends practice after school, getting back home at around ten at night. Mr. Midoriya is furious. He knew this would happen. It hurts what he does but it doesn’t hurt as much as when he hears Inha giggle with the friend she has over right before the door closes and the sounds of the upper world, the world of light, are cut off. He has to protect her. It doesn’t hurt as much as when Mrs. Midoriya passes him in the hall and her eyes don’t even look down at him, colder than the basement he calls his house.

It is his house. His perfect house built on foundations of ‘Okay’s’ and laughs that may not sound completely sane but keep the residents intact for the next day.

Everything hurts but he continues to attend the practice with his friends and the few others who have joined. It hurts but it is nothing against the storm that is welling up as time feels like it is ticking away to his doom when he has to participate in the Sports Festival and he will be outed. It’s only been a week and with two weeks left it feels like his sanity is being stretched thin.

Maybe it is this that leads to the reaction he has to Shouta’s proposition. Maybe it’s the fact that he is already dying inside, that the crazed part of him threatening to break through his barrier slips through that small crack in his fortress of ‘Okay’s’. He is struggling to keep things together as it is. The only thing that he feels is keeping him from straying is the man who sits in front of him and that man says:

“I am going on a date tomorrow.”

Izuku’s hands halt on the keyboard.  _ What? _ Izuku doesn’t know much about relationships. He knows of the one Mr. and Mrs. Midoriya have and, well, memories surrounding that he has forced himself to push to the back of his psyche aren’t too swell. What he does remember is that it took Mommy and Daddy and threw it away. It took Midoriya Izuku and threw it away. It took Son and threw it away replacing it with Midoriya Inha, Daughter, and Akatani Mikumo. It took the light and turned it to the dark and it took the warmth and made it cold.

“I was wondering if you could help me dress for it.”

Realistically Izuku should know that this is Shouta trying to bond with him but Izuku’s mind lost its grip on reality long ago, way back when he was four and those words ‘It’s okay’ were promised by who he once considered a mother long ago but she was never his mother because he isn’t Midoriya and all that was was taken away! He couldn’t believe his ears. His heart twisted in a way he hadn’t thought it cold because at that very moment the words ‘I’m going on a date’ rang clearly through one ear and came out the other as ‘I’m leaving.’

No. Shouta isn’t just leaving. He’s being taken away. Everything is being taken away. Everything has already been taken away. He’s known this for so long. Anything precious to him is always turned against him. He has to get out. He shouldn’t have got attached. He has to get  _ out _ .

Izuku stands sharply, the laptop clattering to the ground. Everything hurts. The world is closing in around him. His lungs won’t respond to his will for air. Shouta stands as well but his vision is blurry and all Izuku sees is the cause for his demise. He and Chip bolt out of the room, slamming his shoulder into the door frame causing him to stumble. His arms pinwheel for a moment but he presses his hands against the wall and kicks off.

Far away. He needs far away. Shouta needs to be far away. He cant get attached. Detach. Detach. Not Midoriya. Nor Akatani. Not same. Different. Detach Detach. Far away from everything.

Tears stream from his eyes as he jumps down the stairs, not even trying to take the first step. He crashes to the floor below, glasses falling off and cracking on the floor. Used to it. It’s okay. Izuku scrambles to his feet and turns to the next flight of stairs only for a sleek purple and orange cat to land in front of him. A Liepard. Izuku spins around but a tall woman with purple hair comes racing down the stairs he just jumped from. Izuku lets out a strangled cry.  _ Get away…  _ He doesn’t see the way the lights flicker in the halls or the way Chip begins to shift beside him. The purple-haired woman reaches forward. “Get away!” he screeches, backing against the wall. Lighting arches from his body. The woman grunts in pain but does not stop. Instead, she reaches out and-

Oh. It’s a hug.

____________________________

“Izuku!” Shouta reaches for the boy. Nemuri brushes past him, already releasing her Liepard. “Stay back, Shouta. Let me handle this.” She doesn’t wait for her friend’s response, instead rushing away with Liepard hot on her heels. In her pocket she turns on her phone’s recording app just in case. Midoriya is already gone but the trail of flickering lights he leaves behind gives the woman the direction she needs. She is faster. Just as she reaches the staircase, she sees the boy throw himself from the top. “Midoriya!” The boy crashes at the bottom. Nemuri curses. “Liepard, block him.” The nimble pokemon jumps from the top of the stairs to the middle of the flight below. Midoriya reels back, turning to Nemuri as she makes her way down the first flight. The greenette lets out a cry that holds so much pain that it almost stops Nemuri right then and there.

His hair and eyes have turned yellow and at this point Chip has already evolved but it isn’t the stable one she has seen. It is spurred by fear and emotion. Lighting lashes out. “Get away!” the boy screams. Nemuri bites her tongue as electricity courses through her body. She steals herself. She just needs to- Nemuri kicks off the ground and captures the boy in a hug.

The electricity that bounces off of the boy’s body stops. Nemuri takes a painful breath. “Midoriya, calm-” “I’M NOT!” Nemuri bites her tongue so hard it draws blood when the boy lights up again. His right leg jerks from beneath him causing both to fall to the ground. He pushes her away. “I’m not Midoriya!” Nemuri pushes herself up.

Blue eyes meet crazed viridian.

Midoriya grips at his shirt. “He took that away from me!” She narrowed her eyes.  _ What does that mean?  _ “He took everything away from he a- and now he’s taking Shouta too!”  _ He, he, h- Mr. Midoriya. Oh… OH.  _ “I’m different!” Midoriya reaches in his button-up pocket. To her horror, a thin needle is withdrawn. “Mi-” “I’M DIFFERENT!” He lines it up to his left ear. She can’t let this happen. Nemuri lurches forward and takes the boy’s wrist in her hand, gripping it so tightly he is forced to drop the needle. Midoriya screeches, lunging for it. Chip jumps off the boys back for it. Nemuri catches the pokemon by the tail. “Liepard, get it away from here!” The pokemon complies, snatching up the needle and running for the hills. Nemuri grabs the boy by the waist. “N- NO! I NEED TO CHANGE!” She grits her teeth against the force of the electricity the boy is emitting.

She remembers the days he has come in with new piercings. She thought it was just being rebellious but no, it was so much deeper. No much worse. They were a sign of his mental state worsening. Every added hole he put in his body was a hole someone else created in his psyche.

Nemuri was tempted to use her quirk and knock the two out but she refrains. She instead pulls Chip to her chest and slams her back against the wall dragging Midoriya by the waist with her. The greenette turned yellow screams and claws, shouting about needing to change. She can practically hear the way his sanity creaks under the pressure of everything. The woman grabs him by the arms and pulls him to her as well, pulling her legs up, she curls into a ball trapping the two beings. Nemuri lifts her hand and puts it over disoriented viridian eyes.

“IZUKU!” she yells. The boy stills. “Nothing is wrong! Everything is alright!” She avoids certain words. “Everything is alright… Shouta isn’t leaving you. He isn’t being taken away.” “Lies!” her ears ring at the volume. “I shouldn’t have got close! I’m not part of it! I’m different! Different is okay! Let go!” It’s muddled, like he is trying to fix what shattered just now. None of the sentences run together correctly. “I won’t let go until you listen to me,” she presses. “Tell me what is wrong.” “No!” Midoriya struggles. “Okay! Okay! It’s okay!”

“It obviously isn’t!”

Midoriya goes still in her arms. “W- w- what are y- you-” He lifts his head. Nemuri’s breath catches in throat. Midoriya jerks in her hold. “I- i- it’s- Y- you- I-” “Izuku-” “SHUT UP!” The boy pushes away from her only for his body to jerk back, flopping awkwardly over her arm. Chip lets out a shriek that almost shatters the lights.  _ Suck! _ “SHOUTA!” she yells. 

She knew the man was waiting at the top of the stairs. He threw himself over the railing and slid down, falling to his knees and immediately scooping up the rampant boy into his arms, ignoring the pains of electricity coursing through his body. “Shh, shh, shh, it’s okay, Izuku, calm down,” his voice was laced with pain. The boy in question let out a strangled sound, a stream of words incoherent escaping his lips. The two words clear enough were simply: “Sh- Sh- Shouta! Okay!” Over and over again. “Shouta! O- Okay!” The raven-haired man leaned back and picked up Midoriya’s cracked glasses from the floor, dodging a spasm-induced hit before sliding them onto the boy’s face. He took Midoriya by the face and put their foreheads together, forcing the boy to look at him. “Izuku, I need you to listen to my voice.” Midoriya’s body jerked, almost forcing Shouta to let go. “No, no, no, listen to me and only me. I’m not leaving. That’s not what that means. I’m still here.”

“Shouta- hurts- Shouta- okay?” Midoriya’s body was slowing down. Nemuri frowned. She was doing so well too. She supposes it truly is only Shouta that can calm Midoriya. Shouta nods. “I’m okay. No one is taking me away from you.” “Sh- Shouta, I- I- I’m-” “Okay,” Shouta nods. The greenette relaxes a bit before tensing again. “Shouta d- d- dating-” “Dating is not taking away. Izuku, do you know who I am going on a date with?” What was supposed to be a simple head shake ended up being Midoriya’s head jerking out of Shouta’s hold. The raven-haired man transferred them to a more comfortable position against the wall for Midoriya’s spasms. The yellow was just starting to leak from his hair.

Nemuri scooted closer, placing Chip in the boy’s arms, the Jolteon once again returning to an Eevee. Shouta leaned over a bit so that Midoriya could see her despite his still occasional spasms. “Who is this, Izuku?” the man asked. Viridian eyes looked her up and down. Nemuri offered a small smile. “K- Kayam-A,” he jerked up, Shouta pressing the boy back down again with practiced ease. “Right. She’s safe, right? You like her, right?” Nemuri couldn’t help but smile when Midoriya nodded. “I’m going on a date with her, Izuku,” Shouta stated. “She won’t take me away from you, okay? You trust her, right? Trust that she won’t take me away.” Midoriya hesitated. “Izuku, if there is one thing in this world that will never be taken from you it is me. I promise.” Viridian eyes widened. “Do you believe me?” Midoriya nodded slowly.

He was so placate in Shouta’s arms. Nemuri is pretty sure that if Shouta said to jump off a 24 mile high cliff Midoriya would do it. Now she is starting to see why Chiyo called this sort of dependency unhealthy but it was still more healthy than the relationship the boy had with his biological parents. Though, at this point, she doesn’t know if Midoriya even thinks of them as his biological parents in general. It sounds like he is trying to separate himself completely mentally but the way he is going about it, self-harming and the like, is concerning to say the least.

“Are you okay with me going on this date?” Shouta asked. Midoriya hummed, relaxing against Shouta. Only his right arm was still twitching slightly at this point. “Shouta happy?” “Yes. Nemuri makes me very happy.” Nemuri blushed, turning away. She couldn’t tell if it was to ease the boy’s worry, the truth, or both but she would take the compliment. “But Izuku, your happiness is important too,” Shouta continued. “Your happiness shouldn’t be traded for others. You shouldn’t have to give it up for anyone else.” Nemuri knew what her friend was getting at. He was talking about the blackmailing situation Midoriya was in. The greenette didn’t respond. His eyelids were drooping. Why wouldn’t they be? After that display, she thinks it would be worse if he wasn’t tired. Even Chip had already passed out, snoozing on his owner’s chest.

“Thank you for being happy for me, Izuku,” Shouta whispered. “After school today, instead of training, wanna help me pick out something good to wear? I know a certain someone thinks I look like a hobo.” Midoriya snorted. Nemuri smiled, leaning against her friend’s arm. Back to normal, she guesses. But for how long? She shuffled her phone out of her pocket to turn off the recording only to find that the electricity from before had fried it.

_ Dang it. _

Little did she know that Nedzu was thinking the same thing as the electricity had caused blackouts in the camera’s around giving them only little spurts of footage and most of them looked like the heroes more or less kidnapping the boy so they couldn’t really use that. The whole faculty was on board trying to get evidence for this kid and by golly you best bet your lucky dollar that they would get it even if it killed them. Nemuri still felt the electricity in her body tingling a bit. That might be a literal statement.

Liepard walked up, settling beside her. She held out her hand and the pokemon dropped the needle. She’d show Shouta later but for now she couldn’t say anything. Midoriya wasn’t really falling asleep, instead more or less just zoning off as he fiddled with the end of Shouta’s scarf, every now and then asking again if Shouta was okay. Eventually they did have to move to the teacher’s lounge before students began filtering in and saw them. Only then did Midoriya fall asleep.

“Shouta,” Nemuri whispered, jerking her head to the side. The man nodded, wrapping Midoriya in his scarf before following her out. Nemuri turned around and held up the needle.

“What’s that?” the man asked. “This is a needle,” Nemuri stated bluntly, “that Midoriya was going to use to puncture his ear in order to be ‘different’. To be ‘not Midoriya.’ Had I not stopped him, he would have a new piercing.” Shouta’s black eyes widened. “He’s self-harming.” Nemuri nodded. “I don’t think he is quite aware of doing it either, too focused on making everything ‘okay’ or something.” Shouta sighed. “I think we just found our newest way to visibly track his mental state,” Nemuri said sadly.

“Yeah…”

____________________________

Shouta’s house. He is going to Shouta’s house.

Is this okay? What is Mr. Midoriya randomly decides to stop by the school and finds him not training. He knows that it isn’t really school hours anymore but still. Shouta needs a new outfit for his date with Kayama.

His date. Izuku shakes with the thought still. He wants Shouta to be happy but he doesn’t want him to leave either but what else is there? He has to believe the man for now. If Shouta decides to leave him… well, Izuku would let him. He couldn’t stop Shouta from being happy. He had to protect him too. Izuku never trusted adults anyway…

“We’re here,” Shouta announced. Izuku flinched, looking out of the window at the apartment complex. He’s never been in an apartment before. “Are you coming?”The greenette jumped again. Chip looked up at him with wary eyes. “It’ll be okay,” he whispers, getting out of the car. Shouta lives on the fifth floor. Izuku and Chip hesitate outside of the door. Shouta walks up to them, crouching. They don’t mean to but they flinch back. Too many things happen behind closed doors of houses. Too much pain and fire and too many lies are spun there. “In my house,” Shouta’s voice is soft, “we don’t hurt anyone. There are no punches, kicks, or flames. Alright?” Viridian and rainbow eyes meet for a split second before they nod.

_ Shouta is okay. Shouta is okay. Shouta is okay. _

Izuku looks around. It isn’t what he expects. There are a lot of boxes as if- His heart drops. “Are you… moving?” Shouta nods. “I am getting a house on the other side of the city, near the city limits to get away from the crowd. It’ll put me about fifteen minutes longer away from UA but a thirty minute commute isn’t nearly as bad as 3 hours, wouldn’t you say?” Izuku huffed, moving to close the door. He bites his tongue. He can’t bring himself to do it so instead he leaves it just a bit cracked. If Shouta notices, he doesn’t mention it, instead releasing Umbreon, Absol, and Seviper to roam. “Why are you moving?” he asks. Trying to get further away from him.

“Well, I guess I plan on bringing in a new charge soon,” Shouta replies, leading him further into the apartment. “I thought a house would be better suited for the added pokemon and person.” Izuku furrowed his eyebrows. “You are adopting someone?” Shouta looks over his shoulder. “Yeah.” Izuku bites his tongue. He can’t help but feel disheartened. Shouta’s getting a child… Izuku remembers when Inha arrived. A lot started to disappear then. It was the time when he was first moved into the basement too. Not that Izuku is Shouta’s child in any way shape or form…

That… hurt more to admit than he thought it would.

Shouta’s room was about how he expected it to be but also not. He expected at least one pair of underwear or pants on the floor but it was actually neat and tidy. There was a rather large bed, which makes sense because Shouta loves his naps, with grey and black bedding that look much softer than any bedding Izuku’s aware of existing. There is a dresser, a closet, and a few pet beds, each different sizes. Seviper is already snoozing in one so he supposes that one is his.

“I guess you can look anywhere. I don’t really have much dress wear,” Shouta says, sitting on the edge of his bed. Izuku nods, moving to the dresser. Wow. And he thought he liked black clothes. “Well you don’t have to look that surprised.” “Shut it, Hobo.” 

____________________________

Shouta watches as Izuku carefully looks through his clothes. He doesn’t miss the way the greenette glances at his open bedroom door every now and then. Chip does too. He knows they are preparing to flee should he try anything. Which he won’t, of course. It doesn’t hurt any less though but he supposes the boy can’t help his paranoia. The panic attacks have been more frequent recently. Shouta thinks things are either looking worse at home for Izuku or the boy’s grip on his sanity is faltering as time goes on. He thinks it is a bit of both.

Izuku pulls out one of the few suits he has. “It’s a bit too formal,” the boy grumbles.

Shouta originally asked this of the boy because he wanted to find a way to bond further with Izuku. Nemuri and Hizashi have made strides using fashion to get closer to the angry teen. He thought that maybe if he does the same then Izuku might start leaning a bit more towards letting out a bit more information about his home life. He flops back on his bed, taking in how Izuku and Chip both flinched. Shouta swallows a sigh. He doesn’t think Izuku got the hint about him adopting a kid. Obviously he meant Izuku. Yes, Shouta is looking for a house now. He knows it might be jumping the gun but he is pretty confident that something will happen after the Sports Festival that might be the breakthrough he needs to get the kid himself. He’d like to provide Izuku with more of a home. Right now Shouta has two rooms: his own and his office. He likes to keep work separate from home as much as possible so he doesn’t really want to transform the office to a bedroom. Plus it is really small. His whole apartment is, really. It isn’t rational to have something big when it is just him and his pokemon but with Izuku, Chip, and by the end of this year there is an assignment to catch another pokemon, things will begin to get a bit crowded. A home is a must. Izuku is used to living in the country anyway so while living on the city border definitely is still a far cry from the tiny rundown town of Vaniville, he hopes it will be better then sitting smack dab in the middle of the city.

Shouta looks over when he hears a sigh from Izuku. The boy holds his glasses in one hand, a replacement pair until they can fix his regular ones, and he pinches the bridge of his nose with his other hand. Sliding them back on, Izuku squints, blinking a few times and leaning closer to the clothes. Shouta’s own eyes darken.

Izuku’s eyes are getting worse by the day. Just today as he was trying to calm the boy, Shouta couldn’t tell if Izuku was really looking at him or not, the cloudiness in his eyes getting thicker and thicker. He notices it in school too; the way Izuku leans so closely to his papers and how sometimes his writing goes off of the lines because he can’t see them anymore. Shouta has been writing larger on the board for him but even then, looking through a few of Izuku’s notes, he can tell that some things just don’t line up with the lesson. Shouta knows the boy is going to need to get surgery on his eyes sooner or later. He’d hope to do so before Izuku goes blind. They can still fix the blindness; it would just be super hard on the teen during that time. It’s not like he can take him for surgery now though. Another reason why Shouta is pushing so hard to find evidence. He fears the worst if Izuku loses his sight.

“Okay,” Izuku turns around, a few pieces of clothing draped over his arm. Shouta notices the way Izuku rounds further than necessary around the bed so as not to accidentally hit it. Chip jumps up and lands near the middle of the bed. His eyes are getting worse too. He didn’t want to look stupid by missing the bed so he overshot it to make sure he at least go on the bed. Just little things almost unnoticeable unless you know the two personally. “I took a few bits and pieces from your suits so it didn’t look too formal but definitely not hobo-ish.” Shouta stands and looks down at what Izuku has laid out.

Black slacks from a suit with a normal buckle belt, a navy blue button up, and then Chip had brought over a pair of his black dress shoes to complete the assemble. Izuku looked at him closely. Shouta couldn’t tell if the narrowed eyes were Izuku scrutinizing him or just so he could actually see him. A bit of both he supposes. “Do you have a bathroom here?” Shouta blinks. “Yes? Take a right and then it’s the first room on the left.” Izuku nodded and much to Shouta’s shock grabbed his hand and pulled the man from the room, Chip following. Absol peaks in from the kitchen and Shouta  _ swears _ that he is smirking. Izuku leads him into the bathroom, before halting. “Wow,” the greenette murmurs. “It’s so big. There is even a shower.” Shouta tilts his head. His bathroom is actually pretty… small… Oh. Izuku shakes his head before settling them in front of the mirror. “Sit down,” he instructs. Shouta complies, putting down the toilet seat and sitting. Izuku nods and turns to the sink, turning on the water. He sticks his hand under the flow only to yelp back in shock. “Are you okay?!” Shouta stands, frantic. Izuku looks up at him, obviously confused.

“You have hot water?”

Shouta stares into those green eyes and a lot of things click for him. Whatever the situation is at home, Shouta was sure the boy had the basic necessities sure as a bath and warm water but after what he just heard, he doesn’t think that is the case anymore. Anger rolls in his stomach. Shouta takes a deep breath and reaches past the boy. The first step is teaching Izuku how different his normal life is from the actual normal and showing him that his life  _ isn’t  _ okay. “Yes, I do. Most people do,” he states. “You have to balance out the warm and cold. Hot on the left, cold on the right.” Shouta adjusts the water accordingly to what he thinks would feel not too hot on someone’s hands who isn’t used to anything warm aside from the flames of who is supposed to be his father. Shouta settles on the toilet again.

Izuku blushes, murmuring a ‘thank you’ before turning back to the sink. Shouta notices the way Izuku lets his hands sit under the flow of warmth a bit longer than necessary before turning to Shouta.

The next fifteen minutes are spent by Izuku combing his hands through black knots in Shouta’s hair. Every once in a while he would pick up Chip and let the Eevee use his claws or the more finer knots. Shouta wants to say that he has a hairbrush but still sort of feels bad for pointing out the normality of having warm water. Oh the little things he has taken for granted. Izuku pulls Shouta’s hair into a messy bun, using the water to flatten out any straggling strands. Shouta wonders where he got the hair tie until the boy steps back and much to Shouta’s shock, the boy’s hair is completely down. Green curls go to the middle of his shoulder blades and cover a lot of his facial features. Izuku has to push his bangs out of his eyes and tuck them behind his ear to see. His hair is a mess when down, incredibly overgrown. He’s obviously not had a haircut in many, many years. 

But what really stands out to Shouta is that Izuku who truly does care about his appearance so much would take down his hair knowing full well how unruly it is just so he could style Shouta’s. It was kind of touching in a way. 

“This is how you need to style your hair tomorrow,” Izuku states. Shouta nods, looking at himself in the mirror. “Thanks, Izuku.” The boy grins. “Can’t let my Da-  _ You _ go out looking like a hobo, now can I?”

Shuota blinks, slowly looking down at the teen beside him. Izuku’s right fingers twitch beside him. He’s noticed his own mistake. “Ah… I better be going now,” Izuku swiftly moves past him, out of the bathroom and down the hall. His hands are frantic to retrieve his backpack which he left by the door. Shouta rushes after him. “Izuku it’s fine!” he reaches out. The boy swirls around, plastering himself to the wall, chest heaving. Chip pulls on his pant leg harshly, trying to drag Izuku from the house. Shouta lowers his arm, taking a deep breath. He crosses his arms. “Teens these days,” he sighs. “Not even telling their parents goodbye before they leave.” Viridian and rainbow eyes widen. Shouta raises an eyebrow. “What? Your Dad’s still waiting here.” Izuku’s hands fall by his side. Oh, how confused he is.

Shouta waits tensely. This is either make or break for them. A line too soon crossed or finally gratefully crossed. Whatever Izuku replies he has to accept, even if it is rejection. He knows that ‘Parent’ and probably more specifically ‘Dad’ doesn’t really ring a happy bell in Izuku’s head. Nothing good has ever been associated with it and the last person to hold that title now beats the kid on a daily basis, Shouta thinks. Izuku’s slip up and Shouta’s confirmation that it is okay may either close a door and lock it forever or open it to a hallway full of a thousand open doors, each to be explored. Izuku lowers his head. Shouta knows the boy and his Eevee are having some sort of silent conversation through eye contact. Finally, Izuku glances up. He turns to the front door and opens it. Shouta’s heart drops. The greenette looks over his shoulder.

“ **B- bye… Dad.** ”

And he and Chip leave, closing the door with a solid * **click** *. Shouta falls to his knees in shock.  _ He said it. Izuku actually said it. _ Tears flowed unwillingly from Shouta’s eyes but he made no effort to wipe them. Only staring numbly at the door. Umbreon, Absol, and even Seviper, waking up from his nap, all come and surround him. Shouta reaches out and hugs Absol, burying his face in the pokemon’s white fur.

“He said it!” 

____________________________

* **BAM** *

* **BAM** *

* **BAM** *

“You think it’s funny coming back at this hour every night, huh, Akatani!”

* **BAM** *

The green-haired boy hits the wall, sliding to the floor. He coughs on blood. Next to him lays Chip, struggling to get to his paws. Heavy footsteps approach. A fist full of his hair is taken, forcing Izuku’s head up. The face before him is so blurry and yet he can see those angry black orbs with such clarity. So, so different are they from Shouta’s.

“The Sports Festival is coming up, mutt,” Mr. Midoriya growls. “You better do well or I might just have to introduce Inha to our little  _ tutoring sessions _ .” One last kick to the ribs and a resounding * **CrAcK** * later, Mr. Midoriya swiftly leaves. Smokey takes his time, walking through the basement after the man trying to heat it up as much as possible without seeming suspicious to Mr. Midoriya. The warmth left behind never lasts long but it’s a nice gesture. Smokey, Izuku feels, is the only comrade he still has in the house above.

Izuku doesn’t dare try and move with his ribs broken. It isn’t his first rodeo and after he almost punctured a lung the first time he’s learned to just stay put, even if it takes days. It’s the weekend anyway.

He stares at the mixing grays and darker grays before him, eyes unable to pinpoint certain objects.

At one point in life, Izuku thinks he remembers what it was like to have a father. One that cared for him and loved him.  _ This _ is how fathers turn out? A fool he was earlier today. Caught up in the moment he even called Shouta by that title. He can’t though, It was a one and done deal. Izuku can’t pursue that path. He doesn’t want to be trapped behind closed doors only to find out that this is what Shouta is like as well. Shouta isn’t his Dad. Izuku knows this. He has known this for so, so long so…

Why does it still hurt?


	14. POLL QUESTION!

Howdy, readers! It's **Krumble**!

So I'm really struggling here with hero names and all. I was wanting your input on it. I like to keep my readers as involved as possible. I've even taken a few of the suggestions as seen in comments before which are super fun and encouraging to read so thank you to all who have commented and still thank you to all who read. It'd be a bit depressing if no one read this, ya know?

Anyway, if y'all have any idea for hero names here is the place to put them! Thank you!

Sincerely,

with lots of love,

your author,

 **Krumble**.

=^-^=


	15. The UA Sports Festival

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well, that and a date between two heroes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone feeling?
> 
> Thank you all who answered the poll question!

“Well, well, well, the kid dressed you well.”

Shouta blushed, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand. He turns to the source of the voice. Nemuri strolls to him donning a cream-colored crocheted sweater, some light blue jeans, black flats, and a brown purse. Her hair is pulled into a high ponytail and normal black glasses instead of the flashy red one’s on her costume. To put it simply, she looks- “Well, you don’t look too bad yourself.” -beautiful. She smiled. Shouta swallows a sigh. He really isn’t good at this whole ‘dating’ thing. 

“Let’s get going,” he stated bluntly. Nemuri walked up beside him and slipped her arm through his pocketed one. “So…? Where are we going?” Shouta looked down the street. “A restaurant. Or more like a cafe. Girls like cafes, right? They are cute.” Nemuri giggled. “Are you asking me? A cafe is fine, Shouta.”

It was a quaint little place that Shouta frequents often. Shouta knows how much Nemuri dislikes being stared at when out of hero costume. She wasn’t too recognizable outside of costume but Shouta has been informed of times when she has had stalkers that would track her down even then. Every famous person does to some degree but for a hero like Midnight who flaunts her body, though her choice, it is more of a risk. Perverted men and women alike have targeted her only to get a fist full of why she is, in fact, a professional hero. But it is for this reason that Shouta chose to take her to more unpopular joints, the underrated places that don’t get the recognition they deserve. He doesn’t have to worry about himself because he is an underground hero but he will worry about her. He wants Nemuri to feel comfortable on this date.

They sit at a small round table, each ordering a drink and their own respective choice of sandwich. And then… silence. Shouta doesn’t know what to talk about. Usually on first dates you get to know a bit about each other but Shouta and Nemuri have known each other for _years_. They already know each other.

The woman across from him laughed, startling Shouta from his inner turmoil. “Sorry, sorry,” she waved. “It’s just so adorable watching you like this.” Shouta blushed. “You don’t have to be so tense, Shouta. What do you think couples do after years of dating? Ask what their favorite colors are again? They just enjoy their company so,” she reached her hand across the table, “let’s just enjoy the day together.” Shouta huffed but extended his hand and interlocked their fingers with a small smirk. “Sorry, I’m not too good at this…” Nemuri shook her head. “If I didn’t like how you are then I wouldn’t have accepted your invitation.” Shouta smiled just a bit. “Thanks, Nemuri.”

The atmosphere dissolved into a more comfortable air. They chatted here and there, a bit of complaining about their students and laughing at the stories, and sometimes they just enjoyed their meal in silence but that was okay. They were ‘enjoying each other’s presence.’

Shouta took her downtown where they walked and went through a few of the small shops in the quieter part of the city and they got ice cream before they settled on a bench below the awning of a building. There was a park in Lumiose City but it was a bit further off. By the end of the day the sun was setting. Nemuri leaned on his shoulder a bit, their hands held together between them.

“This was a good day,” the woman murmured. “Everything has been so crazy lately.” Shouta hums, watching the setting sun. “I’m sorry that I couldn’t really treat you much.” Nemuri shakes her head. “Don’t. Do you think I don’t know what you were doing? I’m grateful you tried to keep us in the less populated areas. It gave us more time to focus on us instead of the rest of the world.” She leans up. Shouta’s eyes widen as a light kiss is pressed to his cheek. “Thank you for today, Shouta.” He blushed, turning away. “It doesn’t have to be just today.”

She giggled. “Then I look forward to our next date. Though, I suppose you have actually asked me to be your girlfriend soooooo…” Shouta turns to her fully. “Alright, Kayama Nemuri. Would you like to be my girlfriend?” She smirks. “Oh someone is getting confident. I guess it wouldn’t hurt to be your girlfriend.” Nemuri winks.

For the first date he has ever been on he thinks it went well. Shouta takes her home. He almost doesn’t want the date to end but, alas, it must. He yawns as he unlocks the door to his apartment.

“How was your date?” The man jumps, having forgotten his mother had gotten in this afternoon. Shouta lets out his pokemon, always having them on him just in case of an emergency. “It was good,” he responds. 

Aizawa Kimika is a near splitting image of himself. She has much longer hair though and gray eyes. A few gray strands of hair mix with her black hair. They are also very close in height. The Aizawa’s weren’t necessarily short but they weren’t the tallest beings on this planet either.

Shouta looks around. “You didn’t have to finish packing for me.” He crosses the distance and greets his mother with a hug. “Oh, hush. This is why you called me down, am I wrong?” Shouta sits on the couch, pulling out Izuku’s hairband he forgot to take with him. “That and-” “The kid you were talking about,” Mom finished. Shouta hummed. Mom’s Litwick bounded over from the box that had replaced his coffee table. His mother was a ghost type. Shout picks it up and sets in on his lap.

“Let’s focus on the good things first,” Mom suggested. “Tell me about your date while I make dinner, okay?”

And Shouta did. He felt like a teen again telling his mother about his first date. She adds her input here and there, having remembered Nemuri from their high school years and the other times she has come down to visit. “I’m so proud of you, Shouta,” Mom hands him a plate, sitting next to him on the couch as his dining room was also packed. “It’s been a long time coming to see you this passionate about something and now you are even dating.” Shouta fiddles with his fork, a small smile gracing his lips. “Thanks, Mom.”

“So, tell me about this kid,” she begins again. “You asked me to come down and maybe meet him? Try and show him what a ‘parent’ is. What did you mean by that?” Shouta sighs. “I don’t know, Mom. He’s so- there is so much wrong. I told you that he is being abused at home, right?” She nods. “I don’t have enough evidence to get Izuku out of his home but it is so obvious that his parents are abusing him. Izuku hates adults with a burning passion. He hates them but I also know it isn’t voluntary.”

“What do you mean?” she presses.

“Like, erm, he can get close to them?” Shouta struggles for the words. “It’s like his mind has been warped to just not like them. There is so much distrust in them. Still, he’s gotten close to me, obviously, and Nemuri and Hizashi have even been able to make a bit of leeway with him. I guess I just wanted him to see you and realize what a real mother is because where he stands now, Izuku doesn’t consider himself a part of his family at all. He’s actually begun to react violently towards his last name.”

Mom narrowed her eyes, putting down her fork. “‘Violently?’”

Shouta nods. “We found out recently that in order to separate himself from them he’s been physically trying to change himself, giving himself piercings with needles and in the middle of a panic attack if anyone calls him by his last name he will lash out at them. He can ‘handle’ it for the most part but his grip on it is slipping the longer this goes on.”

Mom frowns. “Well that isn’t very-” “Healthy?” Shouta interrupts. “Yeah, we know. A lot of what he does isn’t.” “Such as?” Shouta thinks for a moment. “I guess you will just have to see for yourself but I will say one thing, whatever you do, don’t use the word ‘okay’ around him.” Mom blinks. “‘Okay’? Why not?” Shouta shakes his head. “I couldn’t tell you. Just that it triggers something in him that is also not healthy. Nemuri told him mid-panic attack that it wasn’t okay and Izuku had a seizure over it. Oh, that’s another thing. Izuku is prone to seizures so there is that. You don’t really have to do much, just, you know, be my Mom.”

Mom nods, taking up their plates. “Well, I can’t promise anything, but I’ll try my best.” “Thank you for coming.”

____________________________

Izuku stumbles down the sidewalk to UA.

He already can’t see where the sidewalk meets the road and his spinning head is not making anything better. He is using his hand to guide him on the brick wall that surrounds UA and Chip is using his tail to do the same. He is dead tired. “I- ku. Izu-” He yawns widely. “Izuku!” The greenette and Eevee jump, heads snapping up. Two Shouta’s stand in front of him. Wow. His head must really be spinning. Not like he isn’t used to seeing doubles at this point. “Morninnnnnn’” he slurs. He can’t make out the man’s concerned features but he hears the sigh loud and clear. “Alright, someone needs to sleep.” Izuku waved him, walking past him and his shadow through UA’s gates. “‘m okayyy… Just a bit dizzyyyy.” He marks where he sees the red brick meet green grass. That’s where he needs to avoid. _Just walk straight and don’t make a fool of yourself._ Except he does. He misjudges where the couch is, walks straight into it, and falls, the world tilting too fast for him to catch himself. He blinks at the floor below and looks up. Shouta holds him up by his arms. “I know what you are going to say in advance but today I am making you sleep.” Izuku groans. Shouta lowers him on the couch, pushing gently on his chest. Izuku winces, grabbing the man’s wrist. “Not…” “What did he do?” Shouta asks. Izuku averts his green eyes.

“It’s okay,” he whispers. “It wasn’t anything bad…” It really wasn’t. It was _normal_. Shouta sighs. “You have a new piercing,” the man states. Izuku blinks. “Yes…?” He does at the top of his left ear.

“When did you get it?”

“Yesterday,” Izuku answers. “Why?”

Shouta purses his lips. “Nothing.” He looks over his shoulder. “Hiz-” Izuku tenses. “Yamada… can you please get the blanket and pillow?” Izuku feels a bit bad. He doesn’t mean to make the hero feel bad about having a similar name to Mr. Midoriya. Shouta removes his glasses for him and Izuku swears the world had colors that did not meld together this drastically before. Reluctantly, though not really, Izuku lays down. As soon as his head hits the pillow he is out.

____________________________

“You didn’t tell me that he’s blind,” Mom comments. Shouta stares at her before letting out a long sigh. “He’s not.” She raises an eyebrow. “Shouta, he didn’t even see me. His eyes were so foggy I thought I was looking at a cloud.”

Hizashi walks up, slinging an arm around Shouta’s shoulder. “You must be talking about the cataracts. Heya, Mrs. Aizawa.” Mom huffed. “Hizashi, I do believe I’ve told you to call me Kimika on multiple occasions.” The blonde smiles bashfully. “My bad. But no, the little listener isn’t blind. Something at hime is causing him to slowly go blind but he really isn’t.” Shouta nods. “He saw you but I think he thought it was me. Izuku was looking between us. He probably thinks he was seeing doubles.”

“Ah…” Mom taps her chin. “I guess if he goes blind then that will be as good of an excuse to check his home as any,” she muses. Shouta scowls. “I’d prefer to get him out before that happens.” She pats his shoulder. “I know, Shouta. I was only joking.”

Their attention is stolen by a scream that rips through the building.

____________________________

Despite how utterly exhausted Izuku is, nightmares torment him in his time of rest. He feels the long, sharp claws of a Hounddoom ripping through his skin. Layers and layer of flesh being torn apart as his scream bounces off of the walls of the basement, the cackle of Mr. Midoriya’s laugh echoing in his head, taking pleasure in his pain as blood pools around him.

Izuku jolts up, gasping for air. His hands furrow in his shirt, gripping around his chest. A hand finds his shoulder. Izuku tries to look up but another hand covers his eyes. “Calm down,” Shouta’s voice cuts through the constant replay of maniacal laughing in his ears. “I’m here. Nothing is going to happen.” _Shouta’s here. Shouta is okay. It is okay._ As soon as Shouta removes his hand, Izuku pitches forward, leaning his forehead against the man’s chest. Air feels so thin. “Breathe,” Shouta whispers. “I- it hurts…” he whines. “I know. It won’t for long. Just focus on breathing for now.” Izuku nods but it is more than just breathing that hurts. It’s his heart. Here is this man who he wishes beyond all reason to be his father but he knows never will be calming him down from a nightmare like you would hear a parent doing for their child on a stormy night.

Izuku’s fists curl. _It’s so unfair… I hate it!_

“Better?” Izuku takes a deep breath, the new stitches he put in with a needle and thread pulling a bit on his chest. He nods and sits up. “Sorry…” 

“Well that’s stupid,” Izuku’s head swirls around to look behind him. “You shouldn’t apologize for something like that, kid. Everyone has nightmares.” Viridian eyes blink. _What the hell?_ He is pretty sure Shouta is sitting in front of him but now he is behind him. Izuku looks back up Shouta, then back at… Shouta #2? But he sounds like a girl? Shouta #1 sighs and leans over, picking up Izuku’s glasses from the coffee table and sliding them on Izuku’s face. They don’t do much, honestly. Shouta gestures to Shouta #2.

“Izuku, meet my mother, Aizawa Kimika,” he introduces. Shouta #2 waves. “May I get closer so you can see me?” he- _she_ asks. Izuku grits his teeth. “Your _‘mother’_?” It comes out harsher than he means it to earning a whap upside the head. “Yes, my mother.”

“Are you sure?” Izuku asks. He can feel the eyes of the other heroes in the room on him. “Izuku, what do you mean by that?” Shouta questions. Izuku glares at her, who is staying quiet through all of this. He growls and stands sharply. Izuku grabs Shouta’s hand and yanks him up, dragging the man out of the room before he can protest. Izuku slams the door shut.

“Izuku, what’s wrong-” the greenette spins him around and pins the man against the arms by his arms. “ _You too?_ ” Shouta searches his eyes for a long while before realization dawns in his own black eyes. “Wha- NO! Izuku she isn’t like that!” Shouta protests. Something dark swirls in Izuku’s chest. “You don’t know that.”

“I do. She’s never done anything.”

“There is always a first.”

“She won’t.”

Izuku’s grip on the man got tighter. “Don’t be fooled!” he begged. “They are liars!” “Who are liars?” “PARENTS!” Izuku screeched. “Parents and teachers and adults!” Shouta pulled his arms free and crouched in front of Izuku, taking the boy by the shoulders. “Izuku, do you think I am a liar?” The greenette flinched. Shouta continued. “What you called me last Friday was a parental title. You know that right? Do you believe that?”

Izuku hung his head, hands shaking by his side. “I can’t…” “Can’t what?” Tears pooled in deep viridian. “C- call you that…” Shouta doesn’t reply for a long time and then finally, a shaky, watery: “Why not?” Izuku doesn’t know how to describe it in a way the man will understand. He can explain what is happening at home. He can’t explain the paralyzing fear and the manipulation and the sanity that seems to have left him. He can’t explain to him his reluctance like some scholar so all he says is the only reason he can think of.

“ _I- I don’t w- want Shouta t- t- to change too…_ ”

The raven-haired man’s hands fall leaving Izuku feeling cold. He has hurt Shouta. He knows it. It’s better this way though. It’s _okay_ this way. He shouldn’t be getting close. Izuku knows better than to reach into the light like this. The warmth it provides will only feel ten times colder when he is put back in place that night. It’s okay. He can handle it. Even if his mind and heart screams at him and his psyche is creaking under the pressure telling him that, no, he can’t. But he can. It’ll be okay. He just has to walk away. It’ll be okay when he walks away. So Izuku does. “Sorry. I- I’ll go wait in the classroom.” He turns around and walks away, hand on the wall and Chip dragging his tail beside him. Izuku blinks away his tears. He knew it would happen sooner or later. It’s better for it to happen now. Now it will be okay. He no longer will have to play this round robin of Shouta trying to find out his home life and Izuku can just suck it up and move on like always. It’s… better this way…

* **tap** * * **tap** * * **tap** * The sound of running from afar makes him stop. * **Tap** * * **Tap** * * **Tap** * They are getting closer. * **TAP** * * **TAP** * * **TAP** * Izuku and Chip turn around only to be quite literally tackled to the ground by a blur of black. Izuku struggles, heart pounding.

_\-----_

_‘Get up, little man.’_

\-----

_Nonononononononono-_

“ **IDIOT!** ” Izuku and Chip freeze. Chip is pinned by Umbreon and Izuku soon finds himself pulled from the ground and dragged into a tight hug. “Sh- Shou… ta?” The man presses his forehead to Izuku’s chest. It hurts but Izuku is in too much shock to care. “Did you really think I’d let you leave just like that?!” Shouta lifts his head, black eyes filled with desperation and, oh, Shouta is crying. “What kind of father would I be if I just let my son fall away like this?!” Izuku takes in a shaky breath. “Do you really think I’d hurt you?! No parent would do that!”

_No parent?_

“Sh- Shouta, I can’t b- be close-” “You don’t have to tell me,” Shouta cuts him off. “You don’t have to tell me what is going on. I won’t push anymore but _please,_ I can’t just let you go like this!” A choked sob escapes Izuku’s mouth.

“Sh- Shouta, y- y- you don’t understand! I’m- They aren’t-”

“Let me prove it to you, Izuku,” Shouta raises a hand and brushes back Izuku’s hair. “I know you can’t tell me what is going on right now. I know you can’t live under my roof. I know you can’t force yourself to trust me or anyone else but for now, please, even if just in school, let me show you what the title of ‘Dad’ truly means.”

Izuku hangs his head, tears flowing freely from his eyes. So long he has wished for this. Even before he met Shouta, Izuku kept asking, ‘Why doesn’t Daddy love me?’ Can he really do this? Can he believe the man in front of him? Izuku’s learned not to want things he can’t have. Not to want what will eventually be taken away but just this once… he _wants_ this. He _wants_ Shouta to be his father. Just the same way he _wants_ it to be okay. If he just says it enough it will be true. It’s okay. Shouta’s okay. This is okay.

He looks up. “Okay…” he whispers. Just this once, Izuku will want and hope to keep.

It takes a bit of calming down later until the two stand. Izuku holds Chip in his arms as he lets Sho- Da- the man guide him back to the teacher’s lounge with a hand on his shoulder. “What do I call you?” Izuku asks before the man opens the door. Shouta looks down at expectant viridian and rainbow eyes. “I wouldn’t mind it,” was all he said. Izuku nodded. Shouta opened the door and led him inside. He waved over his _mother_.

“Izuku, this is my Mom, Aizawa Kimika,” he introduced once more. Izuku couldn’t hold back a glare no matter how hard he tried as she got closer. The older woman crouched down in front of him and held up her hand. At this range, Izuku can just make out the longer hair, the gray eyes, and the graying hairs. “Hello, Izuku,” he’s a bit surprised when she doesn’t address him by his last name. “It’s great to finally meet my **grandson**.” Tension melts in his shoulders. He hesitantly reaches out and takes her hand. “Likewise, Mrs. Aizawa,” he grumbles. He doesn’t dislike the title of grandson, in fact he quite likes it as a reaffirmation of being Shouta’s son, but he wants her to realize that he does not quite trust her yet and that they aren’t that close. She is unfazed and gives a firm handshake.

Izuku is wary of Mrs. Aizawa still but he appeases… Dad by letting her sit with them on the couch. Nemuri also joins them and he listens to the tales of Dad’s and her’s date. He finds himself dozing off a bit, remembering the exhaustion from last night and ends up sleeping the last ten minutes of his time before school starts with Chip and Umbreon away. 

Over the course of the next two weeks, he knows Dad is purposefully making openings for Izuku and Mrs. Aizawa to be left alone together. He tries to ignore the woman but just like Dad was when they first met the woman won’t back off. She is a lot like Dad, he decides.

“Wow, that looks really elegant,” she mused, leaning over his shoulder. Izuku slams his sketchbook shut. “Is it a wedding dress?” she asks. “I- it’s supposed to be a contest costume,” he refutes. “Is it now?” Nemuri walked by with a stack of papers. “I thought you said you enjoyed designing wedding dresses and special event gowns like that more?” Izuku looks down at his sketchbook. “But Serena is a contestant…”

“Serena?” Mrs. Aizawa asked. “His friend. She is attending a school to train to be a Queen.” “Ah…” Mrs. Aizawa reached over and took Izuku’s sketchbook. He bit his tongue. _Dad’s mom. Dad’s mom._ The woman flipped through the pages. “No one said that you have to give up designing dresses for your friend, Izuku. In fact, it is probably a very good way to get your name out as a designer early in the game. But this,” she flips it open to a long, flowing wedding gown Iuzku had drawn, “is what you enjoy designing the most, right? This is what you want to do. I think,” she flips to a blank page and slides it gently into Izuku’s hands, “that is your friend is truly your friend, I think she will understand that this,” she slides his pencil into his hand and meets his eyes, “is who you are.”

Wonder sparkles in Izuku’s eyes. He blushes a bit, realizing he was staring, and turns back to his sketchbook. “Y- yeah…”

So, maybe Mrs. Aizawa isn’t _that_ bad.

Days are passing though and his time is running out before Mr. Midoriya learns his secret. Of course, Izuku knew he couldn’t hide this forever but he also wanted it to be willingly. Then again, since when did his will matter when it came to Mr. Midoriya in the first place? He’s going to go it quirkless as long as possible and without evolving until he can’t any longer. So long as he at least gets a good ranking without evolving it will be fine. But he might not be able to and he will have to evolve. Izuku has spent the last three days mentally preparing for the backlash. By preparing he means pushing it off by drowning himself in work and ‘okay’s.’

And then, the day came and the night before, Mr. Midoriya had a few _words of encouragement_ to give him.

Izuku found himself down on his knees in the basement again, forehead pressed to the cold, hard ground under the foot of Mr. Midoriya who was continuously applying pressure. Chip was flattened to the ground as well, Smokey’s large paw on his back but Izuku could tell it was much lighter and Chip was basically playing along.

“I expect big things from you, Akatani.”

“Y- yes, sir.”

“You know, I was talking with Inha last night,” Izuku’s heart dropped, “and it seems she is struggling with school a bit. She was wondering if she could come join us for a tutoring session or two. What do you think, Akatani?” He grits his teeth. The pressure on his head is beginning to get unbearable, tears pricking at his eyes. “I- I’ll do well, s- sir.”

The next morning, Izuku can’t leave early because there is a set schedule for when the Sports Festival starts. Of course, he doesn’t sleep but an hour longer because he does still have a three hour commute but one would be surprised how much an extra hour of sleep could do for someone. Mr. Midoriya pushes him out of the house that morning.

“ **Akatani** ,” he looks over his shoulder, “ **we’ll be watching.** ”

He swallows thickly. Inha waves happily. She looks tired, Mr. Midoriya having specifically woken the little girl up so she could send him off. “You are going to do amazing, Akatani!” she cheers. Oh, if only she knew how much dread those words of cheer filled him with. _It’s okay… It’s okay… It’s okay… Smile, Izuku. Smile, AkAtAnI._ He does. “Thanks, Inha! Well then, I’m off!” He waves and closes the door. Immediately, Izuku sprints as far away as possible towards the bus stop. 

\-----

_‘Akatani, we’ll be watching.’_

\-----

He doesn’t need to see the road, having long memorized the route. _It’s okay! It’s okay! Everything will be okay!_ He struggles to breathe, collapsing on the bus stop bench and curling into a ball. _Everything will be okay! I just have to do well and to do well we have to evolve but if we evolve he will find out and if he finds out he’ll be angry and if he’s angry- NO! Okay! It’ll be okay. Just like Shouta says!_

\-----

_‘Shouta, it’s okay, right?’_

_‘Of course.’_

\-----

It’s always harder to call Shouta ‘Dad’ at home or when Mr. Midoriya is around. Is that what Shouta will turn into? It’s just one more reason not to tell the man what is going on. If he just keeps his mouth shut then his friends will be safe and Shouta can’t change. Shouta _won’t_ change. He’s _okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Everything is OKAY._

Izuku hears Bakugou storming up. He forces himself to uncurl, leaning back and letting a confident smirk rest his features. They will be going at the same time today since Izuku isn’t leaving early.

“Deku,” the blonde growls. “I’ll prove to the world today just how much better I am than you.” Izuku tilts his head. “Oh really now? Good luck.” Fury burns in those crimson eyes but the bus pulls up and the two board, Izuku sitting in the very back, Bakugou taking the front. Pretty soon they both fall asleep despite their hatred towards one another. Waking up at three in the morning will do that to you, you know?

Considering the time, he also ends up riding the subway from Aquacorde Town to Lumiose City with Hitoshi. The purple-haired boy tries to create conversation with the greenette but soon finds that the boy isn’t listening, too lost in his own thoughts and fears to really hold much speech.

They don’t go to the normal school building. Still entering through the gates like they would be, instead the three, Bakugou walking a bit ahead, turn and make their way through the campus to a regretfully farther off location where the rather ginormous UA Stadium stands. Already spectators are beginning to filter in, half of the stands already filled with watchers and their pokemon. The teens head around back.

“Hey, kid,” Izuku pauses, looking over his shoulder at the now-familiar voice. Mrs. Aizawa stands a bit further off from the student entrance. He looks back at Hitoshi. “I’ll meet you in there.” Izuku trots over to the woman. “Are you allowed back here?” he questions. She shrugs. “I got permission from Shouta. Here,” she holds out a phone. “He is announcing with Present Mic so he can’t be here but he wants you to call.” Izuku stares at it. His hands are shaky as he reaches out. Izuku clicks his tongue when he misses it. He’s lucky he put in an application for his hero costume support gear so he could actually see-ish today. Mrs. Aizawa hums, turning the phone in her palm. “Let me dial for you.” Pale cheeks redden in embarrassment. _Such a screw up, Izuku…_ Dialing Shouta, Mrs. Aizawa reaches forward and takes Izuku’s hand, placing the phone directly in it. “I’ll be over here. Just give it back when you are done.” He nods and she walks a bit away. The phone clicks.

“ _Hello?_ ” Shouta’s voice. Izuku leans against the outside of the building, waving to a few students who enter as they come. “It’s me, Shouta,” Izuku informs. The man doesn’t respond for a second. “ _Shouta?_ ” he finally says. Izuku flinches, lowering his head.

\-----

_‘Akatani, we’ll be watching.’_

\-----

“ _Hey, kid, I’m not mad,_ ” Shouta reassures him. “ _It’s not an easy day for you, I know. That’s why I had your grandma wait outside for you._ ” ‘Grandma’ he says. Izuku still has a hard time with that but it helps solidify Shouta back into ‘Dad.’ He thinks the man knows this as well. “ _Don’t think about what happens after the festival. Just go out there and show them your stuff, okay? You and Chip will do fine. I’m rooting for you._ ” Izuku bites his tongue. “Thanks… Dad.”

Izuku returns the phone to Mrs. Aizawa, receiving a hair tussle and a: “Don’t give me that! Don’t you know that grandma’s like messing with their grandchildren? Now get out there and knock them dead! Show them what Aizawa’s are made of!”

Izuku blinks. “What Aizawa’s are…” She grins. “You’re one of us, too, Izuku,” she pats him on the shoulder. Izuku straightens up a bit.

_Not Midoriya. Not Akatani. AiZaWa._ He thinks he likes it. It helps him forget what is waiting for him later tonight. With a sharp nod, Izuku rushes in.

“Midoriya,” Todoroki calls after they are all dressed in their UA gym uniforms and are waiting to be announced. Just like that, ‘Aizawa’ is zapped from his mind. Izuku feels his right hand twitch at the name. He hates it so much. It feels like being whipped every time he is called it. The bi-colored stands before him determined. “A lot of people are going to have their eyes on you. I’m just going to say that I’m going to defeat you.” Izuku’s eyes darken a bit. Kirishima whistles, trying to calm the atmosphere but darkness swirls around the two infecting the room. Today is more than just a Sports Festival for the two of them. Both have something to prove here and Izuku has something, _some people_ , to protect. “Hah?” Bakugou storms up. “You’re barking up the wrong tree, icy-hot!” Izuku smirks.

“Yeah, me too.”

The intercoms blare overhead and the first classes are announced. It is time for the UA First Year Class Sports Festival to begin.

Izuku can feel Mr. Midoriya’s invisible eyes on his back as he exits the hall into the main stadium with his class. Around his eyes are his white and rainbow-chrome eye gear. “Are you allowed to have those?” Ash asks. “I got them approved. They don’t really do anything aside from help me see,” Izuku replied. The black-haired boy grinned. “You look so cool!” Bakugou did the statement, claiming he was going to win and causing an uproar in the crowd and students. Izuku sighed. Even he wouldn’t have done that. But through his gear, he and Bakugou met eyes as the blonde stepped down from the podium. Right. It isn’t just Mr. Midoriya he is fighting against. Bakugou has hated Izuku for some time now. This is to determine a ranking system in Vaniville Town.

“Alrighty, kiddies!” Izuku turns his head back up to Nemuri who cracks her mini-whip on the stage, Liepard doing the same with her tail beside the woman. “We will be beginning our first event! I wonder what it is?” Behind her a screen began changing titles too rapidly for anyone to read. She cracks her whip again and it stops. 

**OBSTACLE COURSE**

“An obstacle course! The first forty students to make it to the end will move on to the second round.” Izuku looks around. _Forty, huh? That’ll narrow down the field by a lot._ “You are allowed to use your pokemon through all of the events.” Izuku takes Chip’s pokeball and lets him out. He doesn’t even try to hide a scowl as many begin to look over thinking of him and Chip as weaker because Chip is only on three legs. They are also both quite small. His glare effectively wards off their confident stares. The crowd lines up at a small entranced tunnel, their first obstacle. He stands a bit back.

“On your marks!” He doesn’t move. “Get set!”

\-----

‘ _We’ll be watching.’_

\-----

“GO!”

Izuku lets the crowd go first, getting stuck in the tunnel. He waits his turn. Izuku can be patient. He just has to- _There_. Todoroki freezes everyone to the ground in the tunnel as he bursts through to the other side. “Let’s go, Chip.” The two rush forward. He holds out his arm, letting Chip jump up before following. Many holler and shout as they climb over top of all of the students. Many are already starting to break free, mostly the fire elements with naturally hot bodies, so they have to be fast. He keeps his body low and point of balance high as he bounces from head to head. Not exactly the most graceful way of doing things and it will put him back a bit but it is better than trying to get through the crowd at the start. He just has to be in the top forty.

Izuku and Chip break through the top and jump to the ice below, falling into a natural roll and rolling out, letting the ice take them forward. Robots are whirring around them, taking out some of the general education students. Izuku can’t really see them though. Anything remotely human-like he’s decided to either take down or avoid. The only reason he knows that they are robots is by the sound of their mechanics. He hears one approaching. Izuku doesn’t bother to look around. _In front? No, to the side._ “Chip, swift, left.” The Eevee doesn’t hesitate. Hesitation can cost you your life. In the smoke of the explosion of colliding forces, he and Chip rush past the line of sight of the other robots and move on. The run until a force pulls them back.

“Izuku!” Hitoshi yells, coming up behind them. Espurr has them in its psychic hold. “Geeze! Are you just going to run right off the ledge?” Viridian eyes blink. Yes, he saw the gaping hole of black but he saw other students weirdly crossing it to patches of tan so- “There are ropes,” Hitoshi informs him. “Ah…Thanks for stopping me.” Hitoshi nods. “I won’t help you after this. We are rivals here.” Izuku nods. “I know.”

He and Chip start slowly, finding a rope. They quickly speed up though. He doesn’t want to risk evolution this early in the competition. By the time they reach the other side, he knows his spot in the next round is getting too small for comfort. His sight is really slowing him down. He and Chip stop at the sound of an explosion. They look around.

* **boom** *

A small one.

* **boom** *

Another. Kids are getting knocked down.

* **boom** *

It clicks. It’s a minefield. “Chip,” he whispers, “we are running straight through. Do you think you can handle a bit of fire?” He asks because he knows that with their vision they won’t be able to dodge the mines. At this point in their life, while it still hurts like hell, they can withstand being knocked around and burned for quite a long time without making a single peep but he also knows that both of them have certain… fears of it. Shouta calls it PTSD. Izuku calls it rational dislike. Chip gives a sharp nod. “Eevee.” Izuku takes a deep breath and picks up Chip because he knows the pokemon won’t be able to handle them on three legs. Hip perches on his shoulder. 

“Let’s go.”

____________________________

“ **WOAH! MIDORIYA IZUKU FROM CLASS 1-A ISN'T EVEN CARING! HE’S JUST GOING STRAIGHT THROUGH!** ”

Shouta winces at Hizashi’s commentary. He watches from the spectators box. Despite the blonde sounding chipper, both of them make eye contact and they know they are thinking along similar lines.

Izuku’s just going without any care for what happens to him. He watches as the boy hits a mine and it explodes. To his surprise, Izuku isn’t knocked over. No, he rolls forward, letting the way it destabilizes him to push into his next spurt, something Shouta has learned himself to do over the years in the hero field, using a blow to yourself to spur momentum to your next blow. Izuku’s purposefully leaning a bit forward so that when it explodes it pushes him forward instead of backward. It’s getting him and Chip through but it has to hurt. Those mines aren’t meant to hurt but if you repeatedly hit them like that they can do some serious damage to your legs and your skin can begin to burn. If Shouta knows anything about Izuku and Chip it is that they have a keen fear of fire and explosions. Yet… he is still doing this.

Shouta’s eyes narrow as Izuku and Chip burst through the tunnel, finishing the course in the 38th place. The greenette comes to a halt. It’s hard to see from here but Shouta can see the boy’s right arm twitching slightly. He’s _petrified_ over what he just did. He’s petrified and yet he still did it because somewhere in the little town of Vaniville Midoriya Hisashi sits like an invisible ghost on Izuku’s shoulder. Shouta curses that man with everything he has.

____________________________

Izuku holds his right arm to his chest, willing it to just stop but his mind won’t let it. Every explosion, every flash of bright light and flash of heat against his skin made his heart pound faster and faster. He could feel Mr. Midoriya’s flames licking all over his body, his skin boiling under their flames. Viridian eyes squeezed tightly shut.

“Midoriya!” Uraraka came bounding over. Izuku stumbled back as though he had been physically hit with a boulder. The brunette tilted her head. “Midoriya, are you- UMPH!” He slammed his hands over her mouth, breathing harshly. Uraraka didn’t reel back though. Instead, she seemed more concerned than anything. She reached up and Floette landed in her palm. She held the small flower pokemon up. Izuku felt her smile against his palm. Floette tickled his nose with the petals of his flowers causing Izuku to put his arms down and up again to cover a sneeze. Uraraka let Floette float beside her. “Are you okay?” she whispers. Izuku nods. “S- sorry, just… I know it is an odd request but can you not call me by my name right now?” Uraraka falters. “S- sure.”

Ash and Hitoshi bound up to them. “Did you guys make it?!” Ash asked. “Tell me you made it!” Izuku gave a dry chuckle. “Yup. 38th.” Uraraka nodded. “27!” Ash punched the air. “That’s great! I got 12th!” Hitoshi nods. “32nd.” Izuku let’s them chatter about what they think the next part will be. He takes his time to calm his breathing. He knows, Hitoshi notices because every time Uraraka or Ash try to bring him into the conversation aside from his hums and nods, the purple-haired boy averts their attention back to himself. Chip curls up around Izuku’s neck, purring loudly, the small vibrations helping Izuku to focus.

From a bit off Izuku sees Todoroki. The bicolored boy is shooting him concerned glances. He had gotten first, Izuku thinks but he knows the internal struggle. Todoroki was probably waiting for him to come out. The greenette lifts a shaky hand, fingers still slightly twitching, and waves.

_It’s okay. It’s okay. It’s okay. You made it to the second round. Breathe. It’s okay. Everything is okay._

Midnight cracks her whip, effectively gaining the attention of the students. “Congrats on making it, you lucky 40! To those who didn’t make the cut, you always have next year! Please make your way to your classes seating section.” ... “Now, let’s move on to the next event…” The screen behind her begins to flip again.

**DARK MAZE**

“The Dark Maze,” Midnight announces, “is a new course we are trying out this year. Yes, yes, you are all our lab rats! Just kidding!” Izuku scowled. _Just kidding, huh?_ “What is the Dark Maze, you ask? Let’s see!”

* **RuMbLe** *

Everyone looked down as the ground beneath their feet began to shake. His head shot up. Midnight cast him an apologetic glance and then the floor gave way and the screams of the students echoed through the arena before they were cut off when the ground was recovered by Cementoss. It wasn’t a hard fall, the ground moving slow enough for them to still be standing but also falling until it did give way to a small, few feet drop.

Izuku landed on his feet. He immediately looked up just in time to see the light disappear.

\-----

_The basement door closes leaving a six year old boy in the dark._

_‘Please! Daddy! Let me out! DaDdY!!!’ … ‘Don’t leave me…’_

\-----

An intercom system roared to life, a loud squeal echoing through the… tunnels? Caverns? He couldn’t tell but the shrieking noise effectively cut off that thought process. “Welcome, students, to the Dark Maze!” Midnight’s voice came through. “It’s pretty dark down there, right? Well we can see you all on night-vision cameras. There are no lights, one exit, and only sixteen spots in the final round of the Sports Festival. There is an illuminated red exit sign above the exit door. You may fight, you may search, you may team up. You can do anything but break the walls and kill. The first sixteen out make it on. Good luck!”

Izuku looks around fruitlessly. “Hitoshi? Uraraka? Ash?” They were nearby when the ground gave way. “I’m here,” Hitoshi’s voice echoed. From the corner of his eye, Izuku sees a bit of floating blue. Espurr’s eyes when using psychic. He makes his way to them. “We should stick together,” Izuku suggests. “At least for now.” Hitoshi hums. Izuku reaches forward and finds the purple-haired boy’s hand, placing it to the wall. “Feel your way and follow my footsteps.”

Without another word, Izuku turns around and walks away, hand on the wall, Chip on his shoulders.

“Izuku?” Hitoshi’s voice calls from further back. “Are you still there? I can’t hear your footsteps.” Viridian eyes widen in the dark. He’s gotten too used to this. “Yeah, I’m here. This way.” He pays attention to putting sound to step. Already they can hear fighting from those who want to knock out the competition fast. There are forty people in an unknown expanse of space. They have to be careful. He hears footsteps and holds out his hand behind him, Hitoshi bumping into it. They are getting closer, almost sprinting towards them. Izuku’s eyes flit back to Espurr’s eyes that are… giving away their position!

He curses silently. Izuku grabs Hitoshi’s hand, eliciting a frightened yelp from the unsuspecting boy as he yanks them down. Espurr lets out a startled sound as a blade aims right for him. Soon the body of a boy is frozen in the dark, outlined in the psychic power. A bug-like boy with sharp blades near his mouth, arm formed into a blade reaching for Espurr. Kamakiri Togaru from Class 1-B. Izuku’s head whips around. _His pokem_ \- Izuku’s feet are suddenly knocked from beneath him. “Durant!” the cry comes. Izuku grits his teeth. “Take care of the boy,” Izuku instructs Hitoshi. He reaches out and grabs the plated back of the Durant. It struggles, not expecting to be found. Unfortunately for it, Izuku has more experience without sight than it does. He sees the light of a move powering up but throws the ant-like pokemon against the wall. Chip jumps off his shoulder. “Double kick!” Izuku orders. The sound of well-placed hits echo through the halls and the * **bang** * of Durant’s hard shell hitting the ground notifies Izuku of his unconsciousness. He gives credit to the shock the pokemon went through of unsuspecting hits in the dark being a factor of the swift battle.

“ **FIVE STUDENTS HAVE ALREADY MADE IT OUT! CHOP CHOP!** ” 

Izuku winces at Present Mic’s voice. He turns around. “Hitoshi?” “I’m here.” _Ah. AH._ Izuku storms forward, almost tripping over Kamakiri’s leg. He slams his hand over Espurr’s eyes. “You are giving away our position! You don’t have to float right now. Just ride on Hitoshi’s shoulder.” Izuku knows he sounds harsh but he doesn’t have time to waste right now on rookie mistakes. 

They quietly make their way through twists and turns, eyes searching for the red light of the exit sign. * **creeeaaak** * The sound of a door opening. Izuku and Hitoshi bolt in the direction, taking a sharp turn when the wall ends. The exit sign floats ominously in the dark just as the door closes signalling someone just left. “Let’s go!” Hitoshi rushes forward.

“ **ONE SPOT REMAINING! WHO WILL TAKE IT?** ”

Izuku freezes. Hitoshi freezes. Izuku can just make out his friend’s silhouette in the red glow of the sign. The purple-haired boy purses his lips. “Sorry, Izuku.” He turns around and bolts for the door. 

\-----

_‘Akatani-’_

\-----

Izuku doesn’t know he is moving until his hand is wrapped around Hitoshi’s throat and the boy is thrown back. Chip tackles Espurr, grabbing him by the scruff and slamming the pokemon against the wall. Hitoshi pushes off of the wall. “Espurr, dark pulse!” Chip lets out a screech as the move hits him. Izuku feels Hitoshi’s hands on his shoulders pushing him back, trying to get past. “Espurr, psy-” “Blind Espurr! Sand attack!” Chip moves first, having more trained reflexes. He puts a halt to the psychic attack. Izuku grabs Hitoshi’s arm, twisting and hauling the taller boy over his shoulder. “Double kick, Chip!” Chip leaves Espurr and jumps up, nailing Hitoshi in the back just as he is coming down to the ground with a resounding * **BAM** *. Izuku scoops up Chip and makes a run for the door. A hand wraps around his ankle. He stumbled but didn’t fall. Izuku looks in the general direction of the hand. “Not… yet…” Hitoshi wheezes. Izuku hears approaching footsteps. Another student is coming. He doesn’t have _time_. Izuku lifts his foot, drawing it back.

“Sorry, Hitoshi.”

He swings his leg forward.

\----- 

_‘- we’ll be watching.’_

\-----

* **BAM** *

____________________________

Hizashi is already waving Shouta away as he announces: “ **THAT’S IT! OUR LAST COMPETITOR FOR THE FINAL ROUND IS MIDORIYA IZUKU!** ”

Shouta was running the second he saw Izuku leave the maze. He saw the battle between him and Hitoshi through the night vision cameras. He saw the haunted look in his son’s eyes when he was forced to act like Mr. Midoriya to secure his spot in the final round. Hizashi saw it too. It’s why he sent him away. There is a thirty minute intermission between the second and final round. He needs to find Izuku _now_. Shouta rushes through the halls of the stadium. His mind is racing for any place Izuku could be. He avoids the Class 1-A dressing rooms knowing Izuku wouldn’t go there for a panic attack. A safe space for Izuku? There is no place like that in the stadium. Izuku likes seclusion though because he doesn’t want anything to slip out that could be used as evidence and Shouta knows of one hall that is always empty because the lights are out in it for maintenance still and if Izuku is running around searching for some place to break down then on the off chance he found that hallway… He turns the corner.

Bingo.

In the shadows, barely seen with the light of the hallways before, there was a small being curled up in the corner as far from the light as possible. Shouta’s heart broke at the almost familiar sounds of choppy breathing and choking on tears. He gestured for Umbreon to move first. The dark pokemon sauntered through the dark, yellow rings on its body glowing. Izuku’s and Chip’s heads jerked up. The greenette let out a strangled wail, pushing himself up against the wall.

“I- I’m sorry! I- I- I won’t do it a- again!” he begged. Umbreon didn’t stop. Instead, he waltzed right up and rubbed his head under Izuku’s chin and across Chip’s cheek before flopping in Izuku’s lap. “Breon!” With this, Shouta moved forward, making sure Izuku heard his footsteps. His gear discarded nearby on the ground, viridian eyes turned to Shouta. Suddenly he curses his dark appearance when he realizes Izuku can’t see him amidst the dark lighting and his frightened state. 

It’ll be fine. Shouta has a plan to fix Izuku’s eyes without Mr. and Mrs. Midoriya finding out soon enough anyway. If he’s lucky, the kid won’t go blind by then. After that, he just has to work fast enough to get Izuku out of his home before whatever is damaging his eyes can damage them again. For now, he’d settle for his voice.

“Hey, kid,” he sits on the floor a bit away, leaning against the wall. He will take pride in the fact that recognition flashes in Izuku’s eyes when he hears his voice. “Congratulations on making it to the third round.” Izuku hiccuped, trying to curl in on himself but his body, too tense, wouldn’t allow it. It forced open to a half-curl with a jerk. “N- not good,” the greenette cried. “N- n- not good. I- I was- him- He was-” Shouta hummed. “What is it you always say? ‘Not Midoriya?’ Sure, maybe knocking Hitoshi unconscious with a kick to the jaw wasn’t exactly the nicest way you could have gotten out of his grasp but someone was coming and you didn’t have time. We can’t be nice to villains either. Sometimes we have to be a little rough.”

Izuku shook his head, hands coming up and curling in his hair, pulling it taunt. “Y- y- you don’t- He was-”

“He was what?”

“ **Laughing!** ” Izuku’s head shot up. Oh how terrified he looked. “I- I could hear h- him! Sh- Shouta, I- He’s happy I- I’m doing this! B- but what choice d- d- do I have?! I can’t-” Green eyes widened. He slapped his hands over his mouth, shaking his head wildly. Shouta suppressed a sigh. Mr. Midoriya, he means. Mr. Midoriya is watching, saw him act violently to get his way even if it was in self defense of what would happen later tonight if Izuku didn’t make it, and Izuku claims to hear the man laughing because Mr. Midoriya has his presence so ingrained in the deepest parts of Izuku’s mind so that even when he is quite literally three hours away, Izuku can’t make a single move without being terrified of the response it will trigger in Mr. Midoriya which usually revolves around pain, mental manipulation, and as far as Shouta knows, a whole lot of blackmailing. Even now, when it would be better to talk about it and get it off his chest, especially if Izuku wants to be able to confidently compete in the third round, Izuku can’t speak and is on the verge of a seizure with a metaphorical collar and leash around his neck.

Shouta shuffles a bit closer and holds out his arms. When Izuku can’t speak he opts for not speaking himself. The greenette hesitated but eventually reached out as well only for his arms to jerk back and practically hit himself in the chest. Izuku’s eyes widened. He could feel the seizure coming but like most things in his life he could not stop it. Shouta leaned completely forward, not grabbing the boy by the arms because if they accidentally tensed and jerked back again while Shouta was pulling it could dislocate something. Instead, he fully encased Izuku, Chip, and Umbreon in his hold as a package deal and more or less dragged them over.

Chip and Umbreon leapt off to the ground while Shouta kept his hold on Izuku loose.

And together Shouta rode out Izuku’s seizure with him because even if he couldn’t stop it, much like he couldn’t stop what was happening at the boy’s home, he would prove to Izuku through these small gestures that no matter what happens, no matter how far he falls, Shouta will be there with him through it all.

____________________________

“ **LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, THE FINAL ROUND WILL BEING IN FIVE MINUTES SO GET YOUR POPCORN, GET YOUR CAMERAS, AND GET YOUR SEATS BECAUSE THIS IS SOMETHING YOU DON’T WANNA MISS!** ”

Izuku’s eyes fluttered open. He wasn’t sleeping, no, simply resting. The dark corridor they were in was… familiar. He feels like it brings him back to the reality he regretfully lives in when he opens his eyes to the dim lighting. The only difference is that Dad is here. Dad. Real Dad. Dad looks down at him from where he is holding him as he leans against the wall. “Are you ready?” he asks. Izuku averts his eyes. Dad pulls him a bit tighter. “Don’t let that man take your dreams away from you, Izuku.”

Izuku chuckles. He grabs his eye gear, putting it on before pushing up and standing, wobbling just a bit. He looks down at Dad who is just standing as well. “He did that a long time ago,” he replies dryly. Chip jumps up on his shoulder. “Thanks, Dad, for finding me.” He waves in the general direction of where he thinks Dad is, a slightly darker blob in the dark light, and walks off, hand on the wall.

Having gotten lost in his panic in the first place, Izuku and Chip barely just make it outside to gather with the sixteen who moved on to the final round just as Midnight cracked her whip.

“Welcome back, you cool cats and kittens! We are moving on to the final round of the UA First Year’s Sports Festival!” The crowd cheers. “As it is every year, the final round is a battle tournament. For first years, they are only allowed to use one pokemon when fighting. The rules are as such: to win a battle you have to either knock both your opponent and their pokemon out of bounds or knock them both out or make them incapable of fighting any more. Even if the trainer is out, the pokemon may still fight and vise versa. Any questions?” … “Good! The listings are as follow:

**Ketchum Ash vs. Tanaka Tesla.**

**Kendo Itsuka vs. Todoroki Shoto.**

**Monoma Neito vs. Hatsume Mei.**

**Ohtani Sawyer vs. Midoriya Izuku.**

**Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu vs. Kirishima Eijiro.**

**Yaoyorozu Momo vs. Tokoyami Fumikage.**

**Jiro Kyoka vs. Iida Tenya.**

**Uraraka Ochaco vs. Bakugou Katsuki.** ”

Izuku looked around. _Ohtani. He joined in with after school training a few times._ Izuku meets eyes with a bow with a green bowl cut. _Ah. Him. He was at the recommendation exams. Come to think of it…_ He looks over at the girl with the black ponytail. _She was there too but I thought she didn’t pass? That loud wind guy isn’t here though. Did something happen?_ Izuku shakes his head. _Doesn’t matter. I just have to win. That is what matters._ Izuku looks at the tournament table that had popped up on the screen behind Midnight. _If I defeat him then I will have to face whoever Monoma is. After him it is…_ Izuku meets eyes with Todoroki. A silent vow for the two to meet in battle crossed between them. 

“Let’s get right to it!” Midnight announces. “First fighters to your respective halls, seconds on standby, and let’s get rolling!”

Izuku put a hand on Ash’s shoulder. “Knock ‘em dead.” Tanaka gasps, pointing at them. “I’m in your class too, you know, yo!” Izuku chuckles. “Right, our bad, Tanaka. Whatever happens, prove to them that Class 1-A didn’t fall to some junky villains. Good luck to both of you.” With a pat to Ash’s shoulder, Izuku leaves with the others. He goes up to Class 1-A’s designated seating, looking around. “Izuku, over here.” Chip curls around tighter on his neck as they meet Hitoshi’s violet eyes. He has a bandage on his cheek. Izuku is sure he had broken it before. Recovery Girl must have healed him. The purple-haired boy rolls his eyes. “It was a make or break fight, Izuku. I don’t hold a grudge against you.” Izuku sighs, making his way down to sit by him. “But beware. Next year I won’t let you off so easily.” Hitoshi bumps his shoulder. Izuku huffs. “We’ll see about that.”

“ **THE FIRST BATTLE OF THE FINAL ROUND! YEEEAAAH!** ” Present Mic’s voice booms over the speakers. In the middle of the arena is a large, flat, concrete platform, the battle ground. It has a white outline, the boundaries. “ **FROM THE RIGHT, HAVING TRAVELED ALL THE WAY FROM THE KANTO REGION TO ATTEND UA, WE HAVE KETCHUM ASH FROM CLASS 1-A! FROM THE LEFT, ALSO FROM CLASS 1-A, WE HAVE TANAKA TESLA!** ”

Pikachu jumps from Ash’s shoulder, never really like pokeballs, much like Chip. Tesla throws up his pokeball and in a flash of light his Fletchling bursts out.

“ **FIRST BATTLE OF THE FINAL ROUND… START!!!** ”

It doesn’t last long. Ash and Pikachu are electric types and have the type advantage over the flying types of Tanaka and Fletchling. Of course, the two could have countered it somehow but Ash and Pikachu are fast. Ash’s quirk, Electric Strength, allows him to draw energy and get stronger from the natural electricity in the air. Coupled with the electricity that Pikachu gives off naturally and through his moves, well, Ash can get quite strong. A few well placed punches and thunderbolts and the round is over, being announced as such by Midnight before Tanaka and Fletchling are wheeled away on stretchers having been knocked unconscious and Ash and Pikachu walk off, moving on to the next round.

Present Mic announces the next two: Todoroki and Kendo.

This one ends faster. Much faster. But Kendo and her Makuhita do put up a good fight. Todoroki chooses to go with his Kanto Ninetales. He refuses to use his own fire but he will use his Ninetales. It isn’t like the fox-like pokemon gets the chance to fight though. Right from the get-go, Todoroki lets loose a MASSIVE glacier of ice like the one he let out at the recommendation exams. Kendo and Makuhita fight back, breaking the ice with heavy punches. The girls quirk lets her enlarge her hands and lets just say that those things pack a punch! (*wink wink*) Still, with every punch trying to break out of the glacier, Todoroki adds more ice and eventually their bodies are so numb where they can no longer fight and the first is deemed over.

As the fight between Monoma and Hatsume is called, Izuku makes his way to leave. Hitoshi bumps his arms with his fist. “Go shock them. Show them something they’ve never seen before.” Izuku smirks. “As always.” He leaves.

“Mi- Ah, I mean…” Izuku turns around in the hallway. Uraraka stands twiddling her fingers. “Uraraka? What is it?” he asks. She looks up with a determined look. “I don’t know what is going on but… You can do it! We believe in you!” “Flo!” Floette chirps. Izuku’s and Chip’s eyes widen. He smirks. “Thanks, Uraraka, Floette.” “Vee.” Izuku waves and walks off. 

Izuku makes his way to his tunnel. A dark aura follows him. Monoma’s and Hatsume’s fight, if you could call it that, goes on for much longer than the previous ones. The girl from the support course is basically using Monoma for advertisement. Izuku leans against the wall. The longer he waits for his fight to be called, the more tense he gets. Anger builds up in his gut. Anger and fear. It swirls in him making his stomach churn. When the fight finally ends with Hatsume simply walking out of bounds, Izuku looks ready to kill. Chip jumps from his shoulder to the ground as Monoma, the poor kid, storms out embarrassed. At least he moves on to the second round.

“ **FROM THE RIGHT, WE HAVE OUR GRASSY STUDENT FROM CLASS 1-B, OHTANI SAWYER! FROM THE LEFT** ,” Izuku and Chip step out, “ **WE HAVE MIDORIYA IZUKU FROM CLASS 1-A WHO, SO FAR, HAS BEEN BARELY SCRATCHING BY! WHO WILL WIN?!** ”

Izuku glances up to where the sound booth is. He can’t see it but he knows Shouta is up there. Up there is someone he has to protect. He glances to the Class 1-A seating. Hitoshi is up there which he needs to protect. Izuku looks over to the camera. On the other side of that camera there is Serena, Nurse Hope, Mrs. Midoriya, and Inha. All who he needs to protect. But also on the other side of that camera…

Izuku’s eyes light up with anger. Mr. Midoriya. He wants the man to see the visible hate on his face.

\-----

_‘Akatani, we’ll be watching.’_

\-----

_Fine, Mr. Midoriya. Watch us. I’ll give you a good show_.

Izuku and Chip climb up onto the platform. A green blob is released from a pokeball Ohtani let out followed by a: “Grovyle!” Izuku whispers to Chip behind him. “We don’t evolve until we get behind him. I’ll let you decide when.” Chip nods sharply. Midnight raises her whip. “Battle… START!” * **CrAcK** *

“Grovyle, energy ball!” Ohtani yells, running forward. Izuku doesn’t know what it is that follows the boy’s feet but he leaves a trail of green. Izuku and Chip dodge out of the way of the flying ball of energy. “Chip, quick attack. Get behind him.” Izuku rushes in himself, preparing to meet Ohtani head on. Sound is… the most important part. He hears the fist incoming before it enters his line of sight. Izuku ducks to the side but it isn’t fast enough, his vision impairing his reflexes. His eye gear is knocked off, Ohtani’s fist just grazing it. The world of what used to be silhouettes immediately changes to just swirls of faded color, the greenette unable to distinguish anything apart from one another. _Great…_ Izuku spins behind Ohtani. He tries to raise a foot to get a kick in only for his foot to not move. Something is wrapped around his feet and ankles. Just then, Izuku realizes what was following his opponents initial approach, tree roots that sprouted from the ground and trapped him down.

Ohtani spins and swings forward. Izuku leans back to dodge but unable to move his feet, he wobbles and is able to dodge the kick to his side. Grovyle rushes past Chip, dodging the Eevee. It runs up on Izuku, fist lit up in a thunder punch. Chip lets out a battle cry. Izuku smirks when his body lights up. He leans back, the thunder punch just grazing his hair. Izuku’s hair ignites and his eyes flash red. Chip evolves into Flareon. “Wrong move having you both this close,” he states. “Chip, flamethrower.” Chip immediately spins and fires off the barrage of flames right at Izuku.

And, oh, how it burns. But right now, Izuku is in his fire form so it is significantly less painful.

“Leaf blade!” Grovyle gets between his trainer and the blast, the leaves on his arms lighting up. He puts his arms in an x-formation in front of him to try and cut through the flames, if only to lessen the burn a bit. But they are both grass types. Over the roar of the flames, Izuku hears Ohtani’s footsteps get out from the cover of his pokemon to launch a sneak attack on Izuku when the flames stop. Chip’s flames run out and Ohtani moves but the roots around Izuku’s feet have been reduced to nothing more than a pile of ash. He spins around and reaches forward grabbing his opponents fist. Chip jumps over him with a prepared fire fang for Grovyle who is just barely standing. Izuku pulls Ohtani past him, kneeing the boy in the stomach hard.

“Thunder punch!” Ohtani chokes out, stumbling back. Chip’s flaming teeth meet the electric-powered punch. Both pokemon cry out. Roots try to tie down Izuku again, these ones much more powerful, covering his whole body. Ohtani is going for the finishing blow and with Chip suffering from electrical paralysis, it seems like they are to be the losers of this fight.

But one forgets something. Desperation can do something to a person. A desperate person is willing to go a bit further than one who doesn’t have something on the line. Izuku and Chip have something on the line.

Ohtani’s fist comes, aiming straight for his jaw. Grovyle powers up a mega kick, aimed from Chip. Izuku lowers his head, smoke drawing from his lips, heat building in him. Just as the fist meets his jaw, his body ignites. * **CrAcK** * It hurts, sure, but Izuku’s gone to school with a shattered rib before. This is _nothing_. Ohtani screams as the flames on Izuku’s body travels to him. The mega kick connects with Chip’s abdomen. The Eevee, unable to dodge, instead digs flaming teeth into Grovyle's leg when it comes. Grovyle jumps back, trying to shake Chip off.

Ohtani writhes in pain as the fire covers his whole body. Izuku feels root chains burn away. The flaming boy reaches forward and takes Ohtani by the face.

Ohtani fought the wrong person on the wrong day.

Around and around he spun, dragging Ohtani by the face, all the while heating up his hand until he planted his foot and threw the boy at Grovyle and Chip. “FLAMETHROWER!” When the three collided, Chip, teeth still dug into Grovyle’s leg, let loose the attack. Ohtani and Grovyle screamed. They fell to the ground in flames. Izuku reached right through them and drew Chip from the fire. “Leaf… blade…” Ohtani grunted out despite the pain. Grovyle tried, he really did, but Izuku was _pissed_. He got below the flaming pokemon’s arm and delivered a crushing uppercut blow to its jaw. Grovyle fell to the ground. Ohtani’s eyes rolled back and he fell unconscious.

“Ohtani and Grovyle are both unable to fight,” Midnight announced. “The battle goes to Midoriya and Eevee.” She covered her mic. “We need a medic and some water, asap!”

Izuku blinked. “Chip, Vaporeon.” He hears the crowd’s cheers stop as Chip evolves and he goes from red to blue, scales creeping up his body. “Sorry about that,” he whispers. “Chip, just a light water gun.” Chip puts out the flames on Ohtani and Grovyle before they leave.

____________________________

…

…

…

“Dad? Where are you going?” Hisashi looks down at his daughter. His smile strains. “I am just going to get something, pumpkin. I’ll be back.” The man spins around and storms down the hall. He slams open the closet door and opens the basement hatch, moving the box of weights. 

Hisashi is _furious_. 

How long has Akatani been able to do that? He’s been _lying_ to him. _Hiding_. What, did he think Hisashi would suddenly change because of this? NO. Hisashi walks up into the boy’s ‘room.’ How pathetic, this set up Akatani has made. It all started with those dang clothes that came from world knows where.

_Akatani got a backbone, eh?_ Hisashi leans down and picks up a handful of black jeans and t-shirts. _He’s going to regret hiding this from me. It’s about time I show him who is the boss in this place._

After having his fun in Akatani’s room, Hisashi goes upstairs again. He goes to the bathroom in his and Inko’s room and pulls out his wife’s makeup. He enters the living room again. “Inha, come here.” She bounces over to him. “What is it, Dad?’ Hisashi smiles, crouching by her. “Dad’s going to put some makeup on you, okay?” The little girl’s eyes light up. “I can finally wear makeup?!” Hisashi nods. “But you can’t wipe it off until later tonight, okay?” Inha nods wildly. 

They gather back on the couch again. “Hisashi, what are you doing?” Inko asks. “I’m just giving Inha a little mark so Akatani won’t feel weird being the only one injured. He’s going to be all bruised up from these fights today. Now, hold still, Inha.” “Yes, Sir!” She is none the wiser. In a mix of blues, purples, and yellows, Hisashi gets to work on his daughter’s cheek. “Now, you make sure to tell Akatani that Dad did this when he comes back, okay?”

_Let’s just scare him a little._

“Yes, Dad!”

And the Sports Festival continues in the background.

____________________________

Izuku’s back hit the wall of the inner stadium. He slid to the ground, holding his arms. “DangitdangitdangitDANGIT! That hurt like hell!” Chip groaned. Burns, not nearly as bad as Ohtani’s, marred their bodies. Being fire type doesn’t make them one hundred percent immune and when Chip literally sets them on fire and blasts them all with a flamethrower, well, it hurts. 

Izuku leans his elbows on his knees, pressing his face to his hands, cradling his cracked jaw.

I- I guess he knows now, Chip…” “Vee…” “I- it’s going to be okay… right?” Izuku curls in on himself. He was just so angry in the fight and now after it he only fears for his and Chip’s life. HE doesn’t want to go home tonight.

“You should really get that checkout out, man,” Kirishima walks up as his fight is about to start and Izuku is just inside from the arena. “But that was so awesome too! You should have heard the crowd roar when you suddenly changed.” Izuku and Chip met eyes. Sometimes it’s good to have people that remind you not to be afraid of yourself. He smirks and stands. “Thanks, Kirishima. Good luck.” “Thanks, man!”

Izuku makes his way to the nurse’s room in the stadium.

_Right. We moved on with this power. It will be okay._

When they enter the nurse’s room they are immediately bombarded with Ohtani, covered head to toe in bandages, with a notebook and pencil. “That was so cool! You have to tell me how you did that! I need to know! I need experience!” Izuku sweatdropped. Ohtani reminds Izuku of himself before his life took a turn for the worse. Well, so long as he isn’t mad at him, Izuku supposes he can indulge in his old habits as well. As Recovery Girls is finishing patching him up as Izuku describes his fight style to Ohtani, she whispers quietly. “See? Nothing to worry about.” He looks at her. “I’m not blind. I know you thought you acted like him. Everyone here is fighting to prove themselves so stop getting all lost in your head, sonny, and just enjoy yourself.” Izuku blinks. He looks over at Ohtani who is vigorously scribbling in his notebook.

“I wish I could…” he whispers sadly. She simply pats his shoulder. Ohtani looks up and Izuku’s confident facade is on faster than one can blink.

Enjoy himself? How nice that would be.

Kirishima and Boldore end up winning against Tetsutetsu and Larion just barely. Yaoyorozu ends up losing against Tokoyami. The fight between Iida and Jiro was something to watch that no one wanted to be there for! Jiro’s and Noibat’s loud sounds screeched against Iida’s and Bisharp’s steel and they were forced to turn off the speaker systems until after the fight to stop the squealing in the intercoms. Iida ended up getting around and throwing Jiro out of bounds though and while that was happening, Bisharp got the upper hand on Noibat and knocked him out too. Uraraka lost to Bakugou but she and Floette put up a good fight. They almost won, actually. She was pretty distraught about it though. Izuku sat with her and Floette after she called her parents while Cementoss repaired the field, making sarcastic remarks to cheer her up.

He may not be allowed to enjoy himself but that doesn’t mean she should be sad too. 

And like that, the first tier of the tournament was over and they were moving on to the second one. The second tier would go as such:

**Ketchum Ash vs. Todoroki Shoto.**

**Monoma Neito vs. Midoriya Izuku.**

**Kirishima Eijiro vs. Tokoyami Fumikage.**

**Iida Tenya vs. Bakugou Katsuki.**

Izuku regretfully doesn't have much information about Monoma aside from him being an egotistical brat from Class 1-B. Hatsume’s fight with him didn’t give Izuku anything other than the boy had a Ditto which means he is a normal type which really doesn’t give Izuku any upper hand with any evolution they could choose. That’s fine, though. He doesn’t want to waste an evolution right now.

Izuku doesn’t know who to root for in Ash’s and Todoroki’s fight. He’s closer to Ash, having known the boy for years even if just over letters, but he and Todoroki have to meet in the next tier. Izuku just settles for consoling Ash when he loses and congratulating Todoroki when he wins but he will do that later because he has to go to his fight now.

“ **FROM THE RIGHT WE HAVE THE CLASS 1-B BOY MONOMA NEITO WHO WE DIDN’T GET A CHANCE TO REALLY SEE LAST FIGHT UP AGAINST THE UNDERDOG FROM CLASS 1-A WHO GAVE US QUITE THE SHOW LAST ROUND, MIDORIYA IZUKU!** ”

Izuku, now equipped back with his eyes gear, not that it does much, stands across the field with Chip. Monoma and Ditto stand to face him. Midnight raises her whip. “Battle… START!” * **CrAcK** *

Monoma rushes forward with open palms. Izuku ducks under his arm and kicks the boy in the back. Monoma stumbles a bit but spins around and slaps Izuku’s arm before jumping back. The greenette tilts his head. _What is he doing?_

…

…

…

“What the hell?!” Monoma shouts after a second. “Where’s your transforming quirk?!” Izuku’s eyes widen. “Does Ditto have to be transformed? Ditto, transform!” Izuku watches as the purple blob turns into a brown blob in his vision, probably an Eevee now. Monoma waits again.

“ **ERR… YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO BE FIGHTING…** ”

Izuku sighs. He doesn’t know what Monoma is up to but he doesn’t have time for this. “Chip, quick attack.” Monoma throws an am out. “Copy the Eevee!” He rushes again for Izuku. The greenette grabs the boy by the arms and flips him over his shoulder, Monoma slamming back-first into the ground. Monoma reaches up and taps Izuku’s forearm again before rolling out of the way again and waiting.

…

…

…

“SERIOUSLY?! Why am I not transforming? Ditto, transform!” The fake Eevee blinked. Izuku looks at Monoma. “Is your quirk by any chance copying or taking the powers of others?” Monoma scowls. “Yeah, so what if it is?” Izuku grins, putting his hands behind his head.

“ **I’m quirkless.** ”

He can’t see the way Monoma’s face drops but the gasps from the boy and the audience gives him enough satisfaction. “Let’s end this. Chip, throw it out!” Izuku rushes forward, grabbing Monoma’s arm along the way. The blonde stumbles back, falling on his rear as Izuku drags. He spins and grabs Izuku’s ankle, tripping the greenette. Izuku rolls to his back just as Monoma tries to jump him. Izuku kicks his feet up. They smash into Monoma’s stomach and send him flying behind him.

“Monoma is out of bounds!”

Chip and Fake Chip are running around with various quick attacks and sand attacks. Izuku just stands back waiting. He has full confidence in Chip’s abilities. Soon enough, an Eevee flies out of bounds, hitting the ground and flashing into a Ditto.

“Ditto is out of bounds!” Midnight raises her whip. “The fight goes to Midoriya Izuku and Eevee!” Izuku begins to walk off with Chip when Monoma calls to him, pointing at him accusingly. “Hey, you! Are you really quirkless?!” Izuku hums. “Yeah. I also don’t have an element.” He didn’t need to say that but he was so sick of people looking down on him for it. He didn’t care if the crowd started an uproar. “You should really work on not relying on your opponents quirk too much.” Monoma blushed furiously. Izuku waved over his shoulder and left. He wonders if Mr. Midoriya heard that.

“Did you really have to provoke him like that?” Hitoshi asked. Izuku sat down beside the boy. “Not really.” Hitoshi sighed.

The fight between Tokoyami and Murkrow and Kirishima and Boldore was quite funny to watch. He hates to think it but Dark Shadow, Tokoyami’s half-quirk, kind of sort of just throws them like a couple of rocks. Izuku says half-quirks because it is more like Murkrow melds into Tokoyami and makes a sentient shadow. It’s a bit hard to describe. Either way. Tokoyami wins. The method Iida tries on Bakugou to throw him out of bounds doesn’t work. Bakugou uses small explosions to dodge the boy while giving slightly bigger ones to prevent Iida from taking sharp turns away from the edge and eventually the racing teen races right out of bounds. While this was happening, Quilava burnt the hell out of Bisharp and the steel type pokemon was down for the count. 

There is a five minute intermission before the semifinals. The tier battles for the semifinals are as such:

**Todoroki Shoto vs. Midoriya Izuku.**

**Tokoyami Fumikage vs Bakugou Katsuki.**

The two who lost each fight would then fight to see who takes third place. Honestly, Izuku is just surprised he is in the top four! He hopes it is enough. Before he knows it, the semifinals are starting.

“ **IT REALLY ENDED UP BEING A CLASS 1-A SHOWDOWN! THEY ARE HERE TO PROVE THEIR MERIT AFTER THE VILLAIN ATTACK! LET’S GET RIGHT INTO THE SEMIFINALS!!!** ” The crowd roared. Izuku wrung his fingers together. _It’s okay. We can do this. It’s going to be okay._ “ **FROM THE RIGHT, WE HAVE THE POWERHOUSE TODOROKI SHOTO FROM CLASS 1-A!** ” Izuku knew that the boy and his Ninetales had stepped onto stage when the crowd got louder. **“FROM THE LEFT, MIDORIYA IZUKU FROM CLASS 1-A WHO LEFT US ALL SHELL SHOCKED!** ” He steps out into the light, Chip walking beside him.

“Todoroki isn’t going to use the same method as before,” Izuku whispered as he made his way to the stage. “He is going to try and separate us so he can trap me and you will have to fight as a Vaporeon against Ninetales. We want to try and avoid that but if it comes to that don’t worry about me, just evolve. You know I won’t fall that easily.” “Vee.”

They step onto the stage. He can’t see them but Izuku has full confidence in where Todoroki is. He makes sure to make his eyes meet the bi-colored boy’s head on.

This is not a fight between two competitors in a Sports Festival and no one in this stadium knows that. Both are here with something on the line. Behind them are the invisible ghosts of their tormentors. Around their necks are chains they long to break free from and even if they cannot, this fight will decide whose chain is loosened and whose is tightened. On the line here isn’t the spot in the finals. It’s their sanity.

“Battle…” Midnight raises her whip, “START!” * **CrAcK** *

He felt the air get frigid and the ground rumble. Ice is coming. “Left!” Izuku and Chip jump, rolling to the side. They are up in a second, running for the two. More ice is coming but that isn’t what he focuses on. It’s the * **pit** * * **pat** * of approaching paws. “Stop,” Izuku ordered, but Chip had already heard. They spun around, the ice that was meant to meet them where they would have stood going past them. Izuku’s mind eye had an idea of what the battlefield was. Two walls of ice, close by. In between them in the middle were him and Chip. Behind them was Ninetales and in front was Todoroki. * **pit** * * **pat** * The _swoosh_ of ice coming hit his ears. “Chip.”

They ran towards Ninetales as the ice chased them. Ninetales squealed, firing off a flamethrower at them. Izuku smirked. He and Chip slid under it, kicking out the paws from the pokemon. The steam from the fire and ice hitting filled the arena giving them just enough time to get out on the right side of the wall of ice. His body began to tingle. “Eh? Chip?” The Eevee was already evolving into Jolteon. _Well, I gave him free reign._ Electricity crackled off of his body as his hair and eyes grew yellow. They flew across the field in a blur. Todoroki, having just realized they were no longer in his walls, turned just in time to dodge the punch but not in time to jump over Chip who got under his feet and tripped him. “Tales!” Ninetales let out a barrage of fire down walls of ice right at the three. Izuku jumped back, Chip forward. 

_Dang it._

Immediately Todoroki threw up a wall between them. Now it was just him versus Todoroki and Ninetales versus Chip.

Izuku dodged another wave of ice. Forgive him if his eyes are off and he is getting this wrong but was that smaller? Izuku runs past it with great speed. Todoroki is jumping back, firing off more. Izuku jumps off the other wall to dodge it, flipping on top of the mini-glacier, Izuku slides down to the boy. Todoroki grits his teeth, firing more ice at him. Izuku jumps off and at point blank hits Todoroki in the ribs. The bi-colored boy gasps as electricity surges through his body. From then on, it’s a hand-to-hand fight. Izuku is doing well, using small spurts of electricity to make up for his lacing vision but it’s cutting close. Too many fists that don’t enter his vision in time. His added speed is keeping it pretty even but the longer it draws on the harder it is to keep focused on the sounds. It is more than just the lack of vision distracting him. His body is shaking, a combination of cold and holding this form for far too long. The ice wall hiding Chip and Ninetales cracks, distracting Izuku. Todoroki gets a good kick to his head.

The greenette stumbles back, eye gear flying off. Todoroki goes in for another hit but stops short when they meet eyes. “You’re blind…?” the boy questions. The microphones barely pick it up. The crowd goes silent. Izuku growls, face turning into a scowl. “I’m not freaking blind!” He spins, nailing Todoroki in the side with his foot. “I can see well enough to land a hit on you.” Izuku stands over the fallen boy. “ _Don’t look down on me,_ ” he hisses. Heterochromic eyes widen.

* **CrAcK** *

Chip bursts through the ice and slammed into Izuku. He stumbled back, flailing to catch his scorched pokemon. Chip’s Jolteon form faltered. Izuku felt his arm jerk. _NonononononoNO!_ Todoroki and Ninetales attacked at the same time, flames and ice aimed at the two of them. Izuku jumped to the side, yelping as flames lashed out at the right half of his body. He couldn’t fight with Chip in his arms and he could tell Chip was struggling to stay awake to keep the form but the more Chip flickered the more Izuku’s body began to jerk. “Sorry, Chip,” he whispered. He spun around and all but threw the Jolteon out of bounds.

“ **WHAT’S THIS?! MIDORIYA IZUKU HAS THROWN HIS POKEMON OUT OF BOUNDS! IS THIS AN ACT OF STUPIDITY OR IS HE PROTECTING IT?** ”

Chip finally fell unconscious when he fell. Izuku felt his leg jerk out from under him as he was forcibly taken out of his electric form. Todoroki was hesitating. “If you are going to have a seizure right now-” “SHUT UP!” Izuku yelled. “I can’t afford that and you know it! I’m sick of failing because of this condition!” Todoroki pursed his lips. He understood perfectly well but he also knew it was dangerous for Izuku to continue this.

“Fine, I’ll end this quickly then. Flare, flamethrower.”

Izuku saw the fire come at him. Mr. Midoriya flashed in his mind and he was frozen. If his leg hadn’t jerked from beneath him making Izuku fall under the flames, he would have been burnt to a crisp. Izuku gasped, air coming thin to him.

\-----

_‘Better run, LiTtLe MaN.’_

\-----

Izuku flipped on his back, Planting his arm to push himself up. It spasms out. Izuku falters but slams his left arm to the ground instead and pushes up just as ice blows past him. _RunrunrunrunrunRUN!_ He felt his chest jolt. Izuku fell to his knees. “I don’t want to hurt you, Midoriya.” _Midoriya-Akatani-Izuku RUN._ He couldn’t even see where he was going, jerking and falling out of the way of flames and ice. Todoroki lifted an arm. “This will either end in you having a seizure or me freezing you and it is unsafe for you to be frozen mid-seizure. Just step out of bounds.” His pleads fell on deaf ears, Izuku concentrating too much on his body not seizing to care. _Mr. Midoriya would never give me an out. Trap. TrAp!_ Izuku tried to jump out of the way of the ice but his leg gave out behind him. His leg was encased in ice. Izuku panicked but before he could try and break free his eye caught the form of Todoroki walking towards him and instantly converted it to Mr. Midoriya. His mind shut off and immediately began misfiring. The greenette’s body fell against the ground, back arching.

____________________________

Shoto watched Midoriya collapse, foot still trapped in ice keeping him tethered to the ground. “Flare, cover him with your tails,” he ordered sadly. “The world doesn’t need to see this. Make sure to keep one under his head.” Flare whimpered, doing as told. _His tormentor doesn’t need to see this…_ Shoto turned to Midnight. “Midoriya is having a medical issue, can you please come?” The woman nodded, rushing in right away. By the look in her eyes, she knew what was happening but her position didn’t let her stop the fight earlier. Flare lifted one tail, letting the woman have view of the now fully seizing Midoriya. She reached forward and ran her hands through the green curls. “Hang in there, Izuku,” she whispered so the mic’s wouldn’t pick it up. She stands and turns to the crowd.

“Due to a medical emergency, Midoriya Izuku is unable to continue,” she states. “The battle goes to Todoroki and Ninetales.”

Shoto looks down at the boy who is just now calming down. He doesn’t necessarily believe in any higher power but right then and there Shoto sent up a prayer. _Whoever is listening to this, please watch over Midoriya tonight. Please… Don’t let him be subjected to my pains any longer._ Shoto kneels down and takes Midoriya’s hand. “I know you don’t mean for this to happen,” he whispers. “You are a worthy opponent. Let’s fight again some time when you are better.” Shoto winces at Midoriya’s strangled cry. He stands and turns to Midnight. “Is it okay if Ninetales stays to cover him?” The woman nods. “Thank you. The medical robots will be here to take him soon. We will send your pokemon to you soon.” Shoto nods. He gives one last glance to the golden tails that cover his friend. With a renewed determination, Shoto leaves the scene.

_I’ll win, Midoriya. I’ll win and prove that our pasts can’t hold us back. I’ll win for both me and you so when you wake up watch me._

____________________________

Shouta reads the message from his mother. She’s with Izuku now in the medical office. Even though Bakugou won against Tokoyami and he could have fought for the third place title, they deemed Izuku unfit to fight Tokoyami. Fourth isn’t bad at all, in fact, it’s quite amazing, but the desperation Izuku exhibited to be fighting mid-seizure, even using it to his advantage to dodge, tells Shouta that the boy doesn’t think it is good enough. Shouta knows it isn’t either but he is pretty sure that it wouldn’t have mattered if Izuku had gotten last or first. Mr. Midoriya would have found a way to still justify his abuse and Izuku would accept it without any qualms. 

Shouta doesn’t want to send Izuku home tonight…

He stays to finish the commentary with Hizashi. 

The battle between Bakugou and Quilava and Todoroki and Ninetales was long. No matter how much ice was thrown up it was either melted or exploded. The more shattered ice, the more explosions. Both boys and their pokemon were at a stalemate from quirk exhaustion by the end of it. Todoroki moved first, sending up the biggest glacier he could. Bakugou let loose an explosion near the size of the one he used against Uraraka. In the meantime, Ninetale got behind the blonde and Quilava. When Bakugou turned around, an iron tail sent him flying into his explosive pokemon. He tried to get up only to be bombarded with a flamethrower. Quilava sent out an inferno at it to counter. During that time Todoroki fully encased Bakugou in ice, the heat from the fire attacks helping melt away the frostbite from his ice overuse. In turn, the cold casing of ice didn’t let Bakugou sweat enough to blow away the ice and he was frozen. Quilava won the wire battle but against both Todoroki and Ninetales he eventually lost the fight.

“ **THAT’S IT FOLKS! TODOROKI SHOTO HAS WON THE UA FIRST YEAR’S SPORTS FESTIVAL! STICK AROUND UNTIL WE GET THE PODIUMS SET UP AND THE AWARDS CEREMONY BEGINS!** ”

Shouta stood and left as soon as that was called. He sped his way through the halls to the nurse’s room. Shouta took a deep breath before opening the door. He was immediately greeted with the sound of Izuku’s chuckle. Hitoshi and Mom were by the boy’s bedside. On Izuku’s lap was Hitoshi’s phone. Serena’s voice came through it. She was describing a mess up in one of her dance classes. Shouta figures it was a video chat but Izuku wasn’t really looking, leaning back into a giant pillow, eyes directed blankly up at the ceiling. What more confused Shouta was Uraraka’s Floette that was settled in Izuku’s green curls when the brown-haired girl was nowhere to be found. She probably gave the boys time with their childhood friend.

Shouta came in quietly and sat on the side of Izuku’s hospital cot. The boy startled, eyes flickering to him but he wasn’t moving. 

“Shouta!” Serena’s chirped from the phone. Izuku visibly relaxed. Shouta waved to the girl. “How are you doing, Serena?” She shrugged. “Good, I suppose. You?” Shouta nods. “Same.” he looks over at Izuku. “How are you feeling?” The greenette just smiles with a little giggle. Shouta sweat drops.

“He’s on laughing gas,” Mom informs him. He turns to her confused. “Why?” Hitoshi reaches over and flicks Izuku on the forehead. “Because this idiot thought it was smart to try fighting while his muscles were spasming and now they are too tense to move so Recovery Girl put him on this for a bit to force him to relax.” Izuku stuck his tongue out at the boy. Shouta turned back to Izuku. “It’ll wear off in about five minutes,” Mom stated, “so enjoy this happy side of him for a bit.” Shouta doesn’t like how she worded that, as though Izuku wasn’t able to be happy anymore without medication that impaired his brain function.

The worst part is that Shouta believed that about the boy himself too.

Over the course of the next five minutes, Shouta learned just how true that thought was. Izuku’s face would contort as though he was reminded about something but it faded when Hitoshi or Serena, who noticed as well, would try and crack a joke or something but every time the frown stayed for longer until Izuku’s giggles fell altogether and he went deathly silent. “Izuku-” The greenette let out a long, tired sigh. He looks up with his fake confident gait. “Well, I guess I lost.” Everyone swallows thickly. “What? I- it’s not like I can win them all. Who won the final round?” Shouta decided to speak up. He knew Izuku was trying to ignore what was inevitably waiting for him at home. “Todoroki won.” Izuku nods a bit stiffly. “Sounds about right.” He smirks. “I’m so shoving that in Bakugou’s face on the bus.”

It was a weak attempt at a joke. 

Shouta stayed with Izuku the rest of the time he was in Lumiose City, which wasn’t long. He let the boy lean on him a bit as Izuku’s joints were stiff. They returned to Uraraka her Floette. Izuku wanted to congratulate Todoroki but the bi-colored boy was taken home right after the awards.

“Dad, it’s okay,” Izuku reassured him with a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. The greenette and Hitoshi were just about to board the subway to their respective towns. “You could just com-” “No, **Shouta** , I can’t.” Izuku looks down. “You _know_ I can’t.” The raven-haired man’s heart twisted at the use of his name.

“Izuku, we have to go,” Hitoshi points over his shoulder. The greenette sighs, reaching up and giving Shouta a couple oats on the arm. “I’ll see you Monday. _Probably_.” He and Hitoshi board. Everything in Shouta screams to stop them but the doors close and the subway rolls away from the station. 

He grits his teeth and forces himself to walk away.

_Please be safe..._

____________________________

Izuku feels the tension rising in him as he walks the dirt roads home, trailing a bit behind Bakugou. Chip trods at his side but his paws drag. They stop outside the door of the Midoriya household. He doesn't have time to get prepared as it swings open.

“Akatani!”

Inha practically clobbers him. “You did so good!” Izuku swallows thickly. “Thanks, Inha!” She looks up before stepping back. “Look! Look! Dad did this for me!” She points to her cheek. Izuku can’t see much but he sees her tan skin and right where her clear skin should be is a muddle of blues and purples and yellows. Izuku’s heart drops.

_No…_

“I- Inha, did he-” Footsteps draw his attention up. Izuku meets Mr. Midoriya’s eyes. He flinches when the man’s hand settles on Inha’s shoulder. “I did.” Izuku’s face falls. He’s numb as he is led to the basement.

“Akatani is tired, Inha. I am sure he will tell you about it later.”

Mr. Midoriya follows him down. Anger bubbles in Izuku’s chest. He swings around. * **BAM** * Izuku’s vision goes black for a split second. When he regains sight he is on the ground. Mr. Midoriya stands over him. “Did you think I wouldn’t see? How long have you been making a fool of me, huh, Akatani?!” * **BAM** * Izuku slides across the ground. Fear is overridden by anger though. He forces himself to his feet.

“ **YOU HIT HER!** ” he screams.

Mr. Midoriya takes Izuku by the chin and forces the boy to his toes where their glares meet. “That’s right. I did. Because someone decided it was a _grand_ idea to make a mockery of me.” Izuku’s heart twisted. _He’s right_. “What are you going to do to fix it, hmm?” Tears unwillingly stream from his eyes. “P- please… Let me fix it…”

He is dropped to his knees. Mr. Midoriya hums. “I think the punishment you will find in your room is substantial for today. I am really curious to see what all you can do with this power of yours, Akatani. How about this? I will expand our tutoring sessions to fit in your powers as well. Out of you, I don’t want to see any more rebellion, okay?” _Okay?_ “If you do, well, let’s just say Inha will be feeling it a bit more than a little bruise. I can’t have her rebellion either, now can I. She really looks up to you, Akatani. What will I do if she tries rebelling against me too, hmm? What do you think?”

Izuku keeps his eyes to the ground. “Okay…”

“Ah,” Mr. Midoriya crouches down, “that means those gotta go.” He taps Izuku’s ear. His heart drops. “Wh-” “Are you saying no?” Izuku swallows thickly. His hands shakily reach up to his ear. _Change…_ One by one, the earrings are removed. _B- be different._ One by one they fall into Mr. Midoriya’s hand. _I- It’s okay. It’s okay…_ “Chip’s too.” Izuku and Chip look at each other. Chip, not wanting to make it harder for the green-haired boy, leans forward, angling his ears to him. One by one, they too are taken away and pocketed in Mr. Midoriya’s pockets. The man stands and grabs his arm, harshly dragging Izuku away to the _bathroom._ He’s numb, barely recognizing that the bathroom light has been replaced to work again. Mr. Midoriya has already prepared hair cutting scissors and a razor. “Wh- what are you-” “I think it’s time you start looking like a presentable human being.”

Viridian eyes, dripping with salty tears, stay focused on the word written in his blood on the mirror as locks of his hair fall to the floor: OKAY.

* **snip** *

* **snip** *

* **snip** *

His head is forced under the icy water of the sink as the man scrubs his scalp with bar soap until Izuku feels like it may bleed. All the while he chokes on tears and snot, trying to keep his wails to himself. Finally, he is let go of. Izuku drops to the floor, eyes wide in shock. “I’ll be down in the morning to start your extended tutoring sessions.” And the man turns off the lights and leaves, only the ever-constant dim lights of the basement providing any source of light.

Chip nudges his arm with his nose. “I- it’s okay…” Izuku murmurs. He stumbles to his feet, blindly walking to his _room_ . * **tap tap tap** * goes his foot on the floor before he _opens_ the _door_. Izuku looks around. A strangled noise escapes his lips as he falls to his knees at the sight of the mess before him. All of the clothes Hitoshi has given him over the years are in a pile of ash and cloth, strewn over the cold, hard floor. Izuku reaches forward with a shaky hand and pulls out something from the pile.

A sketchbook. Some pages are ripped out, others are torn, more are burnt to a crisp. Izuku pulls on the edge of one and it crumbles to ash beneath his hold.

“Ha…” It falls to the ground. “Ha… ha… ha…” A criminally wicked smile splits his face. “HAHAHAHAHAHA!” Izuku takes the sketchbook and throws it out of the room. Chip paws at him, whining. Izuku grins down. “What?! WHAT?! I’m okay! It’s O-FREAKING-KAY!” Izuku digs his hand into the pile of ash and cloth, ripping out whatever is left and throwing through the _wall_ not even caring anymore. “IT IS! I SWEAR! CAN’T YOU SEE HOW OKAY IT IS?!” He takes his pillow, slamming it against the wall before throwing it out as well. Izuku storms his room kicking over old clothes that no longer fit, books and papers, pencils and pens. His backpack flies clear out, landing on the pull-up bar before falling to the floor.

“IT’S OKAY! SHE WON’T EVER HAVE TO FEEL THAT AGAIN BECAUSE I CAN FIX IT! I WILL!” Izuku collapses to his knees, gripping his chest. “I’LL MAKE IT OKAY!” He grips his hair, much too short for his liking. “I’LL FIX IT ALL! I”LL MAKE EVERYTHING OKAY!” He rolls over on his back. Chip is pouncing on his chest, trying to perform something similar to CPR because Izuku has forgotten how to breathe. “HAHAHAHAHA!” His crazed laughter fills the basement. “IT’S OKAY, CHIP! IT’S OKAY!” Izuku reaches his hands to the sky. “DO YOU SEE ME?!”

His mind is fogging over from asphyxiation. “DO YOU?!?!?!” Izuku’s eyes roll back in his head.

“I’m okay…”

He passes out.

____________________________

“I see…” All For One hummed. “So that is what X13 has been up to lately. Interesting… I like the eyes that boy had. What do you think, Tomura?”

The blue-haired man grinned. “I think he has the making of a good NPC in our hands.”

All For One smirked. “Jessie, James, Meowth, I have a new task for you.”

The lavender-haired man and pink-haired girl sitting at the bar smiled. “We’ll get right to it, Sensei.”


	16. I am Midoriya

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hero names, illegal transactions, and internships gone wrong! Yay!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone feeling?

**WARNING: THIS HAS MENTIONS OF RAPE NEAR THE END**

____________________________

“Madame Olympia, what do you see?”

The purple-haired closed her eyes. “I see destruction. Pain. Green fire shall spread over the Kalos Region. The region is in grea peril!”

The psychic students gasped.

“But there is hope,” she hushes. “But that hope is surrounded in deep darkness. I can see it…” Her eyes shot open. “Him. He who is stuck in darkness shall bring us into the light!” The vision ended and she floated back to the ground. “Sheryl, find me the participant list of the UA’s Sports Festival. I shall take on an intern.”

They all gasped.

The blue-haired girl bowed. “Yes, Madame Olympia.”

____________________________

Shouta taps his foot on the ground rapidly. Has he been waiting outside of UA for forty-five minutes? Yes. Have students already been filling in? Yes. Has Izuku shown up yet? NO. Izuku always comes an hour early. He should be here by now so where is he?

Shouta’s eyes almost miss him. He doesn’t recognize Izuku at first. The only reason he knew it was him was because not many people have a three-legged Eevee and his hand was guiding him along the walls of UA like always. He doesn’t even seem to notice Shouta as he walks by but Shouta notices a lot about him.

Izuku’s hair is significantly shorter than it was just Friday. It goes barely to the nape of his neck. All of his piercings are missing, even the ones in his eyebrows and the ones in Chip’s ears leaving just a bunch of holes. He is dressed in his UA uniform. Like, completely dressed, blazer and all. He even wears the tie correctly. His glasses are completely missing. Shouta’s eyebrows furrow. This isn’t like Izuku. As such, he calls out. “Izuku.” No response. The boy enters the gates. Shouta follows after. “Izuku,” he tries again. Nothing. With a sigh, Shouta reaches forward and grabs the boy’s arm. “Kid-” He stumbles as Izuku yanks his arm away. Viridian eyes glare over the boy’s shoulder with such malice it sends a shiver down Shouta’s spine.

“ **_Get the hell away from me._ **”

Shouta’s body locks in place. Izuku turns away and storms off into the building. The passing students send wary glances to the hobo-ish looking man who stands shell-shocked outside of the prestigious high school. _What was that? Izuku’s never acted that way. Not even when we first met._ Shouta shakes his head. _I’ll catch him after school_. He enters the building and heads to homeroom. When he enters, Izuku isn’t sitting on his desk like he usually is and his feet aren’t kicked up on it either. Instead, he is sitting normally, albeit turned to talk to his friends.

“-aircut?” Uraraka’s question finished. Izuku scratches the back of his head, fingers twitching slightly. “Ha ha, yeah. It was long overdue in the first place.” Todoroki tilts his head. “What did you do with your piercings?” Izuku feels his ears. “Ah, me and my Dad had a bit of a tussle. I guess I decided he was right. I’m in high school now. It’s childish of me to be wearing all of those things like some emo kid.”

Shouta’s black eyes narrow at that. He knows full well that Izuku doesn’t dress the way he does to be ‘emo’ or ‘gothic.’ It’s a coping mechanism. The way he calls Mr. Midoriya ‘Dad’ so easily irks Shouta. They had a tussle? Yeah right. Something happened over the weekend that is making Izuku act this way and from the worried glances Hitoshi is giving him, Shouta thinks the purple-haired boy thinks so too.

Shouta calls the class to attention. “You all did well in the Sports Festival,” he starts. “As I mentioned before, many heroes were watching to potentially scout you. In a week, you all will be interning with a pro hero or agency somewhere in Kalos for a week. Some of you got scouted by heroes wanting you for internship week. You will choose from the heroes that have scouted you. Those of you who did not get scouted will still be interning. There is a general list that will be passed around to you to choose from. Those scouted will get that list as well as a list of those that scouted you. I want you to have your chosen agency chosen by Thursday and your form filled out for it and turned in by then so we can make the preparations accordingly before Monday. The lists will be coming around. Just take the one with your name on it. As for who was scouted, here are the listings:” he pulls down the protector screen and turns on the projector.

“ **Todoroki: 3,257**

**Midoriya: 3,105**

**Bakugou: 2,855**

**Tokoyami: 1,003**

**Iida: 783**

**Uraraka: 367**

**Ketchum: 127**

**Jiro: 120**

**Kirishima: 62**

Now,” Shouta closes the projector, “for the next part of today, I am going to just be supervision because I am not qualified for these as I don’t care. So, who will be coming in is-” * **BAM** *

“ME!” Nemuri strolled in. Shouta sighed and waved to the class before curling up in his sleeping bag in the corner. He may look asleep but truthfully he was observing Izuku. He’d get to the bottom of this by the end of today. Nemuri cracked her whip on his podium. “Today we will be choosing hero names!” The class immediately erupted. She gave them a minute to calm down before starting again. “Choose your name carefully. You can change your hero name later on but it is usually the first one that sticks. Oh, and did I mention you will all be showing these to your classmates?” Shouta rolled his eyes as his class went frantic. “Liepard and I will be passing around a whiteboard and marker. You have ten minutes and then the show will begin!”

Izuku was the first to write down a name. It was almost immediate. Hitoshi tapped the boy’s shoulder and asked him to show it. When Izuku did, the purple-haired boy went pale. He gave a light chuckle and turned back to his own board, not before sending a warning glance at Shouta.

_What did he write down?_

Soon enough, the five minutes had passed and Nemuri cracked her whip against his podium again. _I swear if that has marks on it…_ “Who would like to go first?” she asked. Aoyama’s hand shot up, unsurprisingly. “Moi! Moi!” He and his Gothorita strode up proudly, the little pokemon holding up their white board. The blonde gave a boisterous grin.

“I CANNOT STOP TWINKLING!” he announced.

“No,” Nemuri immediately shot it down. _Ever the harsh one, I see._ “That is a sentence, not a name. Go back to your seat and try it again.” _Well, that put a mega damper on the mood._ It wasn’t all bad, though. Some had really good names when they worked up the courage to actually go up and present such as Uraraka, Asui, and Todoroki.

“Uravity!” Uraraka announced.

“Froppy,” Asui croaked.

“Kitsune,” Todoroki coolly said.

The names were going pretty well, all in all. Shouta’s had some pretty stupid ones in the past such as- “Lord Explosion Murder” -Ah. Bakugou. That would be one of the stupid ones. Again, Nemuri shot him down only for him to come back with “King Explosion Murder.” He earned a slap on the shoulder and was forced to redo it again. Hitoshi walked up after him with Espurr and showed his name.

“Blank.”

Nemuri tilted her head. “Blank?” He nods. “It was the name of a hacker from the pre-quirk era that almost disassembled the Johto Regions main government artillery unit archive and blew the region up by firing off all of the missile they had at their own land.”

…

…

…

“Why…?” Nemuri whispered, astonished. The class nodded in agreement. Hitoshi shrugged. “I’ve heard it is what my quirk feels like or something and it is kind of like hacking the brain.” Nemuri raised an eyebrow. “Alright… If you want. Good! Next!” Hitoshi sat down and Ketchum, strode up.

“Surge!” He proudly announced. Nemuri nodded. “I like it! Next! We only have you two so what is it going to be?” She pointed at Iida then at Izuku. Iida stood sharply, making his way to the podium. He turned his board around and plainly announced: “Tenya.” Shouta blinked. _Just his name?_ “Are you sure about that?” Nemuri asked. Iida nodded. “Right now, yes.” She hummed. “Alright. Midoriya, you are last. Do you have anything?”

Izuku chuckled, scratching the back of his head. “Well now I feel like I’m copying.” _What does that mean?_ Izuku stands and makes his way to the front of the class. Shouta closes his eyes as his son passes, pretending to be asleep. He hears Izuku take a shaky breath as though he were mentally preparing himself for something. He turns around his board.

“ **Midoriya**.”

Black eyes shoot open. _He did NOT just say that._ Even Nemuri seemed to be stunned into silence for a hot second. “Y- you too?” she clears her throat. “Any particular reason _why?_ ” “Nothing in particular,” the greenette _lies_. “I don’t have a quirk, an element, and me and Chip change too much to be anything set in stone so Midoriya is fine.”

But it’s not fine. As Izuku returns to his seat, Shouta sees the way Izuku’s hand twitches. Izuku hates it so _why_ did he choose that of all names? Homeroom ends soon there after so Shouta has no time to ask but all throughout the day his head is spinning. First Izuku’s angry reaction to him that morning, then his change of appearance, he ignored Shouta’s presence all day, and he chose ‘Midoriya’ of all names to be his hero name.

_What the hell happened?_

When school ends, Shouta returns to homeroom expecting to find Izuku buthe isn’t there. Shouta goes to the teacher’s lounge. “Did Izuku come here?” he asks. “I haven’t seen him all day aside from English,” Hizashi states. “I almost didn’t recognize him!” Shouta grits his teeth. “Thanks.” He closes the door and leaves, rushing down the hall. On the third floor of the building, Shouta eye catches the familiar green hair through the window of the building, already leaving with Ketchum, Hitoshi, and Uraraka. Shouta stops.

_He didn’t even say goodbye. Izuku always says goodbye…_

It happened again on Tuesday. Izuku didn’t come an hour early, practically bit Shouta’s head off when he tried to call out to him, and ignored him for the rest of the day only he was a bit more skittish. By Wednesday, Shouta was getting irritated but not as irritated as the boy. He was shaking more and every once in a while would lick his lips. It was almost like Shouta was when he first stopped… smoking.

“I shouldn’t even be asking this,” Chiyo started, “but does Midoriya by chance smoke cigarettes?” Shouta pursed his lips. He had gone to the elderly woman for help since she had helped him stop as well. “Yes, he does.” Chiyo hummed and turned to rifle through her cabinets. “I thought so. He came in after twisting his ankle in training yesterday and I noticed the symptoms of nicotine withdrawal in him. Of course, I didn’t say anything. I wanted to ask you first, but it seems like he is trying to go cold turkey which I am sure you know takes a lot of effort and usually doesn’t go well.” She stood and put something in his hands. “These are the nicotine patches I gave you when you showed interest in stopping. Give these to him, okay?”

Shouta looks down at the box. “I don’t think I can right now.” Chiyo tutted. “Don’t go getting all depressed now. I may be old but I’m not blind. I’ve seen the changes in the young man.” Her eyes got deathly cold. “Beware, Shouta. This change isn’t a good one. It’s forced. I would not press him at this time. I don’t know about you but to me, with all my years of experience, this sort of situation is the begin of a hard fall into villainy.”

Shouta’s mind blanked. “V- villainy?”

She nodded. “The human mind can only take so much, only harbor so much anger and resentment until it has to be released somehow. My hunch is that he was releasing it prior by way of you and the love you had shown him. It was placating him. Right now, something is happening at home that is forcing him to separate from you. More than that, his other coping mechanisms have also disappeared leaving only his mental state to halt this spiral but I am sure you know that Midoriya’s mental state is neither here nor there. He’s unstable, Shouta. I am giving you this word of warning because you are the only one capable of appeasing him. He’s going to snap at some point whether you are there or not. If he does, you need to chose now if you are going to stand silently by his side even though he is ignoring you right now or leave him completely alone. It would be the easy road. We all know that without evidence we cannot help him and it would be easier on you to accept that fact and move on but something tells me you won’t.”

Shouta scowled. “Of course I won’t. He’s my _son_ , Chiyo.”

The woman smiled warmly. “I’m glad. I hope you stick to that resolve because if he does snap, well, world help us all because it will only be you standing between him and the path of villainy.” Shouta swallows thickly. “Thank you for the warning, Chiyo. I will get these to Izuku as soon as possible.” He leaves, spinning the box of nicotine patches around in his hand.

_Izuku? A villain?_

\-----

_‘Get the hell away from me.’_

\-----

Shouta shivered. _No. I will not let that happen._

Thursday rolls around and Shouta is prepared. He is going to talked to Izuku today even if it kills him. As such, he calls in a favor from Cementoss. He can’t have Hizashi or Nemuri do it, that’s too obvious, and Mom went back home the day after the Sports Festival so Cementoss it is. He’s asked Izuku to come in after school to go over one of his assignments he messed up on. Shouta knows this may anger the boy but he has to talk to Izuku somehow.

Shouta sits on the podium with his arms crossed. The door slides open. Finally, he is grateful for their bad eyesight because Izuku and Chip mistake him for Cementoss and walk right in. “You wanted to see us, Sensei?” Izuku asks.

Shouta hums. “Yeah, I have been for days now.” The two stop, turn right around, and walk away. Shouta grits his teeth and jumps off the desk, snagging Izuku’s arm. “Hold it right there, Izuku.” The greenette glared over his shoulder. “What do you want?” Shouta sighed. “For you to talk to me for once. You can’t expect me to stay silent when you suddenly stone-wall me.” … “Please. I’m just asking for one conversation.” Izuku let out a sigh. He jumped up onto one of the desks.

“Well, speak then.”

Shouta’s eye twitched. “What happened to you, kid?” Izuku raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?” Shouta deadpanned. “Izuku, I’m no-” “Don’t freaking call me that,” the greenette hissed. Shouta blinked. He needs to calm down and proceed carefully because obviously this isn’t working. “I’m not blind. You’ve changed your hair, you don’t wear earrings, and your dressing like you actually care.”

“So?”

“So? So why? This isn’t like you, kid!”

Izuku sighed, running a hand through his hair. “Oh, and I suppose that you would know what I am like? I don’t see the problem. I’m the model student now. What is the issue?” Shouta grit his teeth. “The problem is that this _isn’t_ you and you know it! What did Mr. Midoriya do to you after the Sports Festival?”

Izuku glares at him. “How dare you accuse my _father_ of doing anything to me?” Shouta’s heart hurts. “Dad would never do anything to me. Everything is okay so why don’t we just stop this now, okay?”

_Okay, okay, okay. It’s always freaking okay._ “No, it isn’t and you know it,” Shouta snaps back. “It isn’t okay. You aren’t okay, Izuku.” The greenette’s finger’s twitched. “Shut up…” “I won’t. He’s hurting you. It’s _not_ okay that he hits you. It’s _not_ okay that he is blinding you. It’s _not_ okay that he is blinding you. _Nothing_ that is happening is okay. What kind of father would I be-”

“SHUT UP!” Izuku screams. He jumps off the desk and storms up to Shouta, pushing a finger to his chest. “You don’t know anything! Weren’t you the one who said it’s okay in the first place?!”

\-----

_‘Shouta, it’s okay, right?’_

_‘Of course.’_

\-----

Shouta mentally curses. He knew he shouldn’t have said that back then.

“‘What kind of father’?” Izuku scoffed. “I guess you’ll never know because you _aren’t_ my Dad. So don’t start assuming things about my life that you don’t know. So what if I changed my hair? What does it matter to you? Do I need my teacher’s permission now to do that? No. So buzz off and leave me alone.”

Shouta felt something in him that he hadn’t felt in a long time. It was a despair that he only felt when his Dad died. It was the pain he only felt when Shirakumo died. And now… it was the despair he felt when he realized his son just died. His mouth opened and closed for a few times before he finally whispered, so quietly it was almost nonexistent. “Do you… really believe that?” Izuku flinched at the wetness of Shouta’s voice. “Was it all fake then? Do you really not care at all?” The greenette hung his head fists shaking by his sides.

…

…

…

“ **Yes.** ”

Shouta let out a shaky sigh. He didn’t even realize he was crying, not that Izuku could see his tears. “Okay,” he whispers, willing his voice not to break. “Is there anything else you need, _Aizawa-sensei_ , or may I leave?” Izuku asks. “You can go…” Shouta doesn’t dare looks up. He hears Izuku’s footsteps and Chip’s pawsteps getting further and further away. Tears silently stream from the raven-haired man’s eyes.

_Are you happy now, Mr. Midoriya? I lost… You won… Congratulations…_

Shouta wipes his eyes before sticking his hands in his pockets. His right hand hits two rectangular objects.

\-----

_‘Come on, Shouta!’ Shirakumo grabs the teen’s arm, trying to pull him up from the ground. ‘Get up! It’s not over yet!’_

_‘I… can’t… so… tired…’ he pants back._

_Shirakumo pouts and points over at their training battle opponents. ‘Look at them all smug. Are you really going to let them win?’_

_Black eyes close. ‘I can’t…’_

_‘You can,’ Shirakumo states boldly. ‘I believe in you. Don’t give up, Shouta!’_

\-----

Black eyes open.

Shouta is running before he even registers his feet are moving. Windows and doors fly by in a blur, air whipping past him mixing with his tears. His feet pound against the tile floors of UA Trainer's Academy, silent footsteps trained into him long forgotten. He should have seen Izuku by now so that means the boy is also running. He’s hurting too. All of this, Mr. Midoriya’s hold has reached far beyond Izuku so far as to grip Shouta’s own consciousness and almost let him falter. He can’t let it end like this. He won’t let Mr. Midoriya win! Shouta bursts out of the building into the open air. He bolts down the paht, lungs screaming at him to stop and _breathe_ but he can’t because he has to catch Izuku before he goes home tonight with those final words in his ears. He sees the green hair off in the distance. Ignoring the embarrassment of yelling out in public with all these people around, Shouta plants his feet, takes a deep breath and yells.

“ **IZUKU!!!!!!!!!** ”

The green-haired boy and his Eevee jump, spinning around. Shouta starts up again, ignoring the eyes of everyone now staring. Izuku crosses his arms, trying to come off as angry but his eyes are red and wet and puffy as though he had just been crying. His breathing is uneven and his right arm jerks slightly though he tries to hold it to his body to hide it. “I thought you said I can go, sensei,” he growls. Shouta comes to a halt before them, panting heavily.

Shouta reaches forward and grabs Izuku’s hand, the boy jumping not having seen him move. “What are you-” Shouta places his phone in the boy’s hand. “Here,” he takes Izuku’s thumb and runs it along the side, “is the power button and the volume.” “Wha-” He pushes Izuku’s thumb to the power button and it turns on. “This,” he guides Izuku’s thumb across each number, “is the password.” He does it a few times before actually pressing it down so he can remember the motions. The phone opens. Shouta puts Izuku’s thumb over the microphone button. “Hold this down and say ‘Call Hizashi’ and either I or Present Mic will pick up.”

Izuku’s eyes narrow. “I don’t know what you are getting at-” “You do,” Shouta denies that. “You aren’t stupid, _Izuku_ ,” he continues to call the greenette by his name. “I had planned on getting you for the internships and hopefully fixing your eyes over them but fr now, this will have to suffice.” “Sen-” “DON’T CALL ME THAT,” Shouta growls. “Fine, let’s just say that nothing is happening at home and that your father hasn’t beat you, blackmailed you, and abused you. But on the off chance that he turns on you, on th off chance that something happens and you simply cannot handle it anymore-” Shouta guides Izuku’s hand through the motions again, “- this is the power button, this is the password, this is the microphone. Call and we will be there as fast as possible. Do you understand?”

…

…

…

He almost thinks Izuku won’t reply before the boy’s hands move. “Th- this is the power button,” he recites,” Shouta’s eyes light up, “this… is the password… this is the microphone…?” Izuku glances up at him. Shouta gives an exaggerated nod so the boy can see it. “I will give you the charger tomorrow. Turn around and let me hide it in your bag.” And he does. Shouta makes quick work of it because he doesn’t want Izuku to fall back on what he said in the classroom. “One last thing,” he taps a box to Izuku’s hand, “just get a good feel of this real quick. I am also putting these in your bag. They are nicotine patches. One every 16 hours should help reduce the withdrawals from stopping smoking, okay?” Izuku nods numbly and Shouta slips them in his bag. He turns to boy around and scoops up Chip, giving them both a tight hug.

“Sen-”

“Don’t you _ever_ say that again,” he growls. “I’m not ‘sensei’ to you and you know it.” he lets them go. “I’ll be waiting, _Izuku_.”

The greenette’s eyes search his form a moment longer before he nods and runs away, Chip following. Shouta stands and runs in the other direction. He sprints back to UA, bypassing the main building and rushing to the faculty parking lot where he finds his blonde friend about to get in his car. “Hizashi, wait!” Shouta grabs the car door before he can close it.

“Shouta?! What are you doing?!” Shouta grabs Hizashi by the arms. “I * **pant** * have * **pant** * a favor * **pant** * to ask you.” “Okay, okay, okay,” Hizashi pats his hands. “Calm down. What do you need.” Shouta looks the man in the eyes. “Your phone. I need your phone.”

…

…

…

“What…?”

____________________________

“So who did you guys choose for you internships?” Uraraka posed the question at lunch on Friday.

“I’m going to Elesa’s!” Ash exclaimed. Izuku raised an eyebrow. “Who is that?” “She’s in the Unova region,” Ash explained. “She is actually a gym leader there that reached out because her gyms specializes in electric types. She’s even paying for me to fly out.” Hitoshi hummed, pulling out his phone and looking her up. “The Shining Beauty, huh? Her main pokemon are two Emolga but she uses others too.” “I’ve never heard of that pokemon,” Todoroki muses. “It’s native to Unova.”

“Well, cool!” Uraraka exclaims. “I’m going to this man named ‘Gran Torino’ or something.” “Never heard of him.” “Me neither! What about you, Midoriya?” Izuku looks up from his portion of cold soba. “Ah, I’m also going to a gym leaders,” he replied. “Olympia scouted me at the Sports Festival, apparently.” Everyone stared at him. Hitoshi pointed at him with a shaky finger. “O- Olympia as i- in the number five h- hero in all the c- country?” Izuku nods. Uraraka gasps. “That’s so amazing!”

Izuku shrugs. “I guess.”

\-----

_‘I had planned on getting you for the internships and hopefully fixing your eyes over them but fr now, this will have to suffice.’_

\-----

Izuku had seen Da- Sho- Aizawa’s… name on the list of heroes who scouted him. He was so, so tempted to go with him but if Mr. Midoriya ever found out that he interned with Aizawa Izuku fears it wouldn’t turn out well for him. The man is already suspicious of Izuku’s teacher as it is and right now Izuku really can’t afford any slip ups. He’s barely even awake as it is. Training has been going longer and longer each night. He feels like he is dying half of the time and the other half of the time he actually is dying. Literally. He has stitches over his left ribs right now.

That being said, Aizawa’s phone weighs like a twenty ton brick in his pocket. Izuku doesn’t dare leave it at home. Not after Mr. Midoriya went through his _room_ like that.

Izuku spent a good thirty minutes putting back together his room after his little tantrum. That’s what Mr. Midoriya calls them. Izuku’s just being a baby, petty. ‘Man up’ he says. No one bearing the Midoriya name should be having such childish temper tantrums.

“I’m going to Moonlit’s,” Hitoshi muses. “I think it would be good to get some underground hero experience.” They all nod. “Todoroki?” Uraraka presses. The bi-colored boy looks up. “Endeavor’s.”

…

…

…

“THE NUMBER TWO?!

Izuku sighs. His friends are so boisterous. But he doesn’t hate them. Instead, he adds them to the list of those he needs to protect.

Protect… Izuku doesn’t know how much longer he can do this. When will it end? After high school? Doubted. Mr. Midoriya wants him to make a good name so he can give Inha a good future. Izuku supposes that makes since. Vaniville Town is a low income community. Not many people there make it big or go on to do big things. Izuku just doens’t understand why it has to be him. Will he continue to have to live in the basement? What happens when he becomes a pro? Will he have to send all of his earnings to the Midoriya’s? And aside from all of that… can he last the three years of high school in general? 

Everything feels so numb. It’s only pain, anger, and fear. 

He feels like he is going insane but he doesn’t know how to stop it. Better him than Inha or Hitoshi or Nurse Hope he supposes. Serena won’t talk to him because he told her that he is stopping designing her costumes but he can’t give a reason why. Still, he wants to protect her too. Mrs. Midoriya, Inha, Serena, Hitoshi, Nurse Hope, Aizawa, and now Uraraka, Ash, and Todoroki too. Just work a little harder, _Akatani_ . Just get up one more time, _Akatani_ . Taka one more hit, _Akatani_.

It’s only pain, anger, and fear.

He’s just… so… tired…

Sunday night he is packing his clothes for the week of the internships, practically falling asleep as he does so. Izuku leaves the _bathroom_ with his toiletries. He sighs. He can’t even see the art he made on the walls anymore to reassure him. Tunnel vision, he thinks it’s called. As of now, he can only see a small dot of light in his vision which he uses to make out the silhouette of anyone he is directly facing or to see the edges of the path where sidewalk meets road and such. It’s enough to get him around, that’s about it. He _can_ read if he holds the book or paper up to a few inches in front of his eyes. Izuku is pretty sure his is completely blind in his left eye, actually. He made a request for his eye gear on his hero costume to use vibrations to light up a screen behind the visor that would show him an infrared silhouette of whoever is in front of him at point blank to help him fight. He’d be picking it up on Monday before he leaves for Anistar City, six hours away from Vaniville Town.

After safely hiding Aizawa’s phone and phone charger in his bag, Izuku finally face-plants onto his bed, groaning when his stitches remind him that, yes, they are still very much there. Chip drags the thin sheet over him but it only goes so far as his knees leaving the bottom half of his legs and his feet cold. That’s okay. He’s used to the cold by now.

Izuku reaches up to where he knows he has written the word ‘OKAY’ in his blood on the wall near his eye level. He slowly traces his index finger over the word again, and again, and again until he can’t keep his eyes open any longer and he falls into an exhaustion-induced sleep.

…

…

…

* **SPLASH** *

* **gasp** *

Izuku shoots up as he and Chip are drenched in ice cold water. Mr. Midoriya smirks at them from above. “Wakey, wakey, mutts. You better be upstairs in no less than ten minutes, got it?” Without another word, he leaves and the two are scrambling to their feet. A rush. It always is in the morning. No time to wake up slowly, peacefully, _warmly_ . Sprinting to the _bathroom_ , Izuku strips and redresses as fast as possible. His uniform is still slightly dam from washing it the night before. He looks in the mirror and for a split second freezes. Izuku tears his eyes away from it.

He can’t stand to see his reflection anymore.

He hates it. He hates Mr. Midoriya. Even though he protest them he knows he hates Mrs. Mioirya and Inha too. He hates adults. He hates lies. He hates all of those petty suck-up’s who will do anything for an extra buck. He hates all of that and now…

Izuku hates himself too.

They leave the _bathroom_ , go around the work out equipment, enter the _kitchen_ , get each of them a protein bar, and leave. Chip crinkles his nose at the bar. “Just don’t eat the moldy parts,” Izuku sighs, taking a bite out of his. “It doesn’t matter as long as we get something in us today.” The Eevee yips and eats it. He * **tap** * * **tap** * * **tap** *’s on the floor and opens his _bedroom door_ , grabbing his bag and heading for the _front door_. “I’m going to need to duct tape these again,” Izuku muses as he slips on his shoes and sees his toes wriggle from the bottom. “Or I could sow them since I know how now.”

Mr. Midoriya’s face flashes in his mind’s eye.

Izuku shakes his head. “N- never mind. D- designing, sowing, fashion, all of that is too girly anyway.” Izuku stands. “I don’t need it…” He and Chip climb the stairs and knock on the metal. No sooner is it opened and that small pinpoint of vision he has is pierced with light. He’s learned not to flinch at it anymore. Silently, Izuku and Chip follow Mr. Midoriya through the house. Izuku can’t see it but he glances at Inha’s room door. She’s still asleep.

\-----

_‘Look! Look! Dad did this for me!’_

\-----

Izuku looks down.

_I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry. I should have done better. Should have tried harder. Should have obeyed more. I should have been that perfect doll he wanted me to be sooner. I’m sorry._ And then, in the back of his head, a little: _But why does she get all of the love…?_

When Inha was sent off to school she got a hug and a kiss on the forehead Izuku got a * **kick** * and a warning. Why? What did he do wrong? What did he do-

\-----

_‘Learn your place before I use your precious friends to remind you where you belong.’_

\-----

_No, no, no_ , Izuku shakes his head, picking himself up from the ground. _Don’t think that way. Obey, accept it, accept what you are and they’ll be okay._ He makes his way to the bus in the dark of the early morning. _Okay. Right. They will be. They will be okay. You will be okay. Izuku is okay. Izuku is okay. Everything is okay because he is okay and will obey. Obey. Okay. Okay? Obey._

Izuku boards the bus, ignoring Bakugou’s presence, and sits in the back. He immediately rifles through his bag for the nicotine patches, removing his old one and slapping the new one on. Izuku sighs and leans his head against the side of the bus.

_I need a smoke._

Hitoshi didn’t join them until they were on the subway from Santalune City to Lumiose City. He was with his dad this month. When they got to school, Izuku promptly ignored Aizawa’s presence and the man treated him like any other student. Even though he always does that in class, it still hurts. There is a distance there now that Izuku knows is his fault.

_Mr. Midoriya’s fault. If only he would just-_

\-----

_‘YOU HIT HER!’_

_‘That’s right. I did. Because someone decided it was a grand idea to make a mockery of me.’_

_\-----_

_‘What are you going to do to fix it, hmm?’_

\-----

Izuku shakes his head. He’s fixing it right now. He is putting everything back in place the way Mr. Midoriya wants it to be. That means Aizawa is just another teacher in his life. Another untrustworthy adult. This is how Izuku will fix it. If it costs him his little bit of peace, if it costs him that small bit of love he was shown, then so be it.

He’s _fixing it_.

_Obey and it will be okay. Okay? Okay._

Izuku breaks away from Hitoshi to go to the support department to pick up his new support gear. He has to think to himself, _Wow, it is so much quieter in the support co-_ *! **BOOM!** * Izuku jumps as the door to Powerloader’s shop is blown clear off followed by-

\-----

_Smoke fills the basement. It clogs his nose, sifts through his airways. His lungs are forced to breathe it in. It burns. IT BURNS! Everything burns!_

_Make it stop!_

_I can’t breathe!_

_Please!_

_A low, thrilled cackle from above. ‘Get up, LiTtLe MaN.’_

\-----

“-rry! Are- y? He-! Hello!”

Izuku jumps when a hand enters his vision, the light skin a stark contrast from the dark smog. “Ah…” Izuku lets out a shaky sigh. “S- sorry about that! I guess I just got startled!” The hand disappears and it is replaced with the blurry face of a blonde boy with round glasses. “Oh no! It should be us who are sorry! Hatsume, get over here and apologize!” A pink-haired girl bounds over and the blonde puts his hand on her head making them both bow. “Sorry!” Izuku shakes his head rapidly. “N- no! It’s fine! Really!”

They stand again.

“This sadly happens a lot,” the boy sighs. “My name is Sakaguchi Clemont, a third-year here at UA, and this is Hatsume Mei, a first-year. She’s my third-year student mentoree project.” Izuku blinks. _In situations like these…_ He looks down and sure enough there is a hand sticking out waiting for him. Izuku focuses so he doesn’t miss it, taking Sakaguchi’s hand in his own and shaking it before looking up. “Midoriya Izuku,” he greets. They let go. “I was coming in for my eye gear.” Hatsume beams. “We just finished it! Come see my new baby!” She runs back in. Izuku narrows his eyes. “Bab-”

“Her inventions,” Sakaguchi cuts in. “I know. We get that a lot. Please do come in.” Izuku follows the blonde in. “Bunnelby, can you please bring over the gear for a Midoriya Izuku.” A small bunny-like pokemon grabs a case with its ears and bounds over. “Thank you,” Sakaguchi takes it and turns to Izuku, opening the case. It looks just about the same as his last version only they are a bit thicker around the eyes and each side a red dot. “These are for turning on the infrared,” Sakaguchi states. “There is one on each side depending on which hand you use most. I took the liberty of making them bright colors since it would seem I was correct in assuming you are going blind.” Izuku purses his lips. He can’t deny it if his eyes look like they do. Sakaguchi continues. “As requested, it should show you the surrounding area up close based on vibrations so you can get at least a general overview of your surroundings. I took the liberty also of making it where if there is vibrations from your side, a little icon in the screen will show up to alert you of which side it is coming from. If you still cannot see those, that side on your gear will vibrate. Try it on and I will show you.”

Izuku takes it, feeling it in his hands a bit before sliding it over his eyes. It doesn't do too much for his vision really. “Okay, try turning it on. Just simply pressing the button will do,” Sakaguchi instructs. Izuku nods and presses the one on his right side. “I am going to wave my hand now.” Sakaguchi does and from the hand, the vibrations in the air make a picture of red and yellows of the outline of Sakaguchi and around him. There is the edge of a work bench and behind him, just barely is the outline of some sort of machine. The hand moves to the right of Izuku’s head. Just as Sakaguchi said, the right side of his gear vibrated. Sakaguchi did the same to the left. “How is it?” Izuku blinked a few times.

“It feels… nice to see,” he states. “Well, like, I can still see a bit without them but seeing the entirety of what I am supposed to see, even if just in numbers and infrared, it’s nice. Thank you, Sakaguchi.” Izuku turns off the gear and takes it off. Sakaguchi grins. “No problem! Hatsume, will you get the gloves?” Izuku tilts his head. “Gloves and boots?”

“Yup!” Hatsume bounds over with a pair of white gloves with thick, purple finger pads and his white boots from his costume, now with purple bases. “These,” she holds up the gloves, “have pads that if you touch any surface, any vibrations that come off of it will register in them. The same with your boots so, like, if you are walking they will send off vibrations and those will come back to you and vibrate a certain intensity to tell you how close something is. They, too, will pick up anyone walking or running towards you even if you are standing still. We know you left gloves off for a reason because of the way you transform so we made these as loose fitting as possible while still functioning. Are my babies cool?!”

Izuku felt them in his hands. A smile graced his lips. “Yeah… they are amazing…”

He hopes how grateful he is comes off in his voice. Sakaguchi pats his shoulder. It does. They pack it all up in his case that holds the rest of his hero costume. “Don’t be afraid to come by if you ever need anything, Midoriya,” Sakaguchi waves as he leaves. “Thanks.”

Izuku feels a bit lighter now he thinks. It’s always worse in the mornings or at night when his sanity is trying him. It’ll be okay. He can get through it. He always has and always will.

For days, weeks, months, years. He’ll be okay.

Izuku meets his class outside. “Let’s go, class,” Aizawa waves them out of the gates. “We are going to the station. All of you have your tickets with you, right?” Everyone nods. “Where’s Ash?” Hitoshi asks. “He left early to catch his plane to Unova,” Izuku replies. At the station, the greenette trails a bit behind to speak with Todoroki.

“Are you sure you will be okay?” he whispers. The bi-colored boy nodded. “Someone taught me recently that I can’t let my past hold me back any longer,” he smirks. Izuku blinks. “Tell that person good job then! Screw what everyone else says!” Todoroki deadpans, letting out a dry chuckle. “Don’t worry, I will. Have a good week, Midoriya.” “You too, Todoroki.”

Izuku pulls out his ticket. “Rail 63.” Izuku jumps at Aizawa’s voice behind him. “S- Sensei?!” he looks up. “That’s what it says,” the man says. It’s pretty deep in the system so I’d get going if I were you.” Izuku blushes and nods. “I’m off then!” He scrambles to catch up with Hitoshi. The purple-haired boy’s train is a little bit before his so in the end it is just Izuku and Kaminari.

“Where are you going?” Kaminari asks. It’s weird. The two haven’t much spoken before but it isn’t bad. Izuku is trying to not be as snarky before to people he doesn’t know. Mr. Midoriya doesn’t like it. He prefers Izuku to be this little angel. _Obey and it will be okay. Okay? Okay._ “Anistar city,” he replies. “About three hours from here by train.” Kaminari nods. “I’m going to Laverre City.”

“You excited?”

“Totally! Me and Helioptile have been wanting to go for a while.”

“Because of the Pokeball Factory?”

“Yup!”

“ **ALL BOARDING SUBWAY 63!** ”

“Ope!” Kaminari waves as the train pulls up. “Let’s go, Mido!” Izuku raises an eyebrow, following “Mido?” “Yup!” They sit next to each other. Pokemon weren’t allowed on the subway so Chip and Helioptile were in their balls. _Mido_. Izuku thinks he likes it. If he has to be called anything around that name he supposes Mido is good. 

It’s an hour long trip to Laverre City where Kaminari gets off and then it ended up being 2 and a half hours to Anistar City from there. It would have only been three hours in total for him if he had gotten on the train for Dendemille Town first but he supposes it was cheaper for the school to build on other’s tickets. 

Anistar City is huge! Almost as big as Lumiose City! Izuku immediately let out Chip and the two began on their way. Anistar City is on the coast. He was told to meet Olympia at the Sundial. The Sundial is a giant pink crystal that floats in the water connected to a path that you can walk up to it on. It towers far above most of the buildings in Anistar City and the tip of it extands to the water. It is a major tourist attraction there.

Izuku knows he won’t be able to see that far so he opts for going around the edge of the city until he sees the giant blob of pink. “Wow,” Izuku muses as he walks up the path to it. “It’s massive.” “Eevee.”

“Isn’t it?” a whimsical yet commanding voice spoke. Izuku and Chip looked… up. Above them floated a woman with purple hair that curled up over her head on each side. She donned a white cloak and star earrings of great size. Beside her floated a female and male Meowstic. Of course, Izuku didn’t see much of that. Viridian eyes blinked. “Um, who are you?”

…

…

…

A chuckle. “Ah, hello, boy,” she landed beside him. He could tell the moment she saw his eyes. “My name is Madame Olympia, the leader of the Anistar Gym. You must be Midoriya, correct?” Izuku’s eyes widened. He bowed deeply. “I am so sorry, ma’am! Y- yes, I am Midoriya Izuku, ma’am!” He stood up stiffly. She hummed. “I know. I have been expecting you. It is a pleasure to have you and your Eevee. Please do follow me.”

Izuku followed with a blush tinting his cheeks. _Great. First day and I’ve already made a fool of myself._

The gym was in a large open field. A stone dome with golden rings around it. It definitely looked like a psychic type gym. Upon entering, there was a room that looked like it was a lobby like area but sort of medevil with stone pillars and white floors and a desk up front. On either side of the room were two halls but on either side of the desk were giant double doors. “Come, I will show you the arena where I fight those who come seeking a gym badge. I expect you will be coming to me someday for the same.” Izuku nods.

In order to be a hero, you must obtain eight gym badges by the end of your high school career. When you choose to do that is your choice. Some go all out and try to get them all in their first year which is stupid as many fail and they still have to complete the other two years. Some procrastinate and get them all their third year. Others, like Izuku plans to do, get them as they go. Even if you get all eight badges though, you still have to get your provisional license before graduating high school so you can move on to professional hero license. You need to have both. After obtaining all eight badges you gain the title of a professional hero but many just go on to be sidekicks because they don’t rank high in the Hero Ranking Battles. The Hero Ranking Battles happen once every three years. All who have the title of hero in the country compete to see who wins the top spot in the Hero Ranking Chart and the title of Champion. The current Champion is All Might and has been for almost thirty years now. Of course, even if you don’t rank high you can start your own agency and move out of being a sidekick or you can become a solo hero like many underground heroes such as Aizawa, aka Eraserhead, but it is more likely that you don’t. You can climb the ranks higher by being a sidekick of a high ranking pro and then branching out to make your own agency but most just try for the top spot from the get go. Every year as a professional hero, however, you have to go around at some point and earn four badges. Some go to different gyms to collect more. Others just revisit their past winnings even though you don't get a second badge from the same gym, just a verification to get it renewed after you win the battle. Some will go to other regions if they run out of gyms here to add to their collections and more or less show off. Izuku expects he will have to do that. Mr. Midoriya wants him to have a good name so that means he will have to have a variety.

She opens the door and reveals the gym. It. Is. AMAZING.

A giant dome with galaxy walls that look so real he might just take a star from the sky. The floor is covered with giant gears and over it is a giant transparent gowing blue rectangular field. It almost looks like glass but more like a hologram. Around the edges of the dome is a path of the same glass-hologramic flooring.

Izuku squints a little, slowly walking forward onto it. He makes sure it truly is solid. One too many times has he stepped into something not solid by mistake of his eyes. * **tap** * * **tap** * * **tap** * It’s solid. Izuku and Chip walk onto it. “Woah…” he whispers. Olympia nods. “This is where it happens. This is also where I hold my Psychic Class.” Izuku looks up at her. “Psychic Class?” She nods, leading him over the expansive field. “I train those with psychic powers, also known as their natural element, and their psychic pokemon in the way of using it naturally. As I am sure you know, elements tend to act up on their own. If a fire-elemented person is angry the air around them will get hotter. The same can happen with any element, really. Well, with enough training, you can control that natural element almost like a second quirk. I train psychics to be able to use their element with their pokemon to the fullest. Myself, I use it to see the future.”

Izuku’s eyes widened. “You can see the future?!” he exclaims them mumbles, “I can’t even see my own two feet…” Olympia chuckles. “I do get visions periodically between me and my Meowstic. Now, come, let me show you to your lodging for the week.”

____________________________

* **knock** * * **knock** * * **knock** *

The front door to the Midoriya household opens revealing a rather tall man with black eyes and curly black hair. “Well, hello? Who are you?”

Jessie smiles, her long pink haired pulled tightly into a bun. “Hello, Mr. Midoriya. My name is Jessica Mober and this is my fiance, Jonathan McCalistar.” James, with his pale purple haired pulled back, holds out his hand. “Hello.” Mr. Midoriya shakes it. “Congratulations. What can I do for you two?” Jessie pushes up her fake glasses. “We would like to speak with you about your son, Midoriya Izuku, and potentially a substantial monetary increase in your bank. Lets say, adding a few more zeroes to the end of the amount in there already?”

Mr. Midoriya raised an eyebrow. “Please, come in.” He moved out of the way for them.

Jessie and James entered the house. It was just as they expected. A simple, ordinary family home. Well lived-in. But this family lives in Vaniville Town and lets just say that anyone living here does not have plenty of free cash on hand. When one is desperate enough, Jessie thinks that they are willing to do anything.

They are sat tat the kitchen table. “Can I get you some tea? Water?” Mr. Midoriya offers. “Water is fine,” James responds. Soon enough they are all gathered around the table. “Now, what is it that you wanted to speak with me about Izuku?”

James pulls out an envelope and sets on the table. “In here we have the first ten thousand of five hundred thousand dollars. You can check it to make sure the amount is correct.” The black-haired man does so, eyes lighting up a bit. Bingo. Set out the hook and line and let them come get caught. Money persuades all. “As I am sure you know, the whole world saw the performance your son put on at the Sports Festival. Our boss has taken a special interest in him and we would like to offer you five hundred thousand dollars in cash for us to take and train him ourselves. We will pay for his food, boarding, house, and take good care of him. We assure you, he will be in good hands. Consider this ten thousand a sort of settlement. In our bag we actually have the rest. We also have all of the paperwork and means to complete the trade off with us today. What do you say?”

Mr. Midoriya looked between the two of them and let out a sigh. “Let’s cut straight to the point. You two are villains, aren’t you?”

Jessie and James smiled. “Precisely, but you already knew that, didn’t you?” Jessie muses. “And yet your still let us into your home.” Mr. Midoriya nodded. “I’ll be honest with you, I’ve spent years despising my son and molding him into the perfect. I could care less about how you treat him. What I want is the cold, hard facts on how we won’t get caught. Right now Izuku isn’t even home. He is at an internship with Olympia in Anistar City. What will I do if I sign this and he still comes back at the end of the week? I’ve been molding him into a doll that will obey my every command. If he finds out I sold him but he escapes my clutches, what then will I do? I cannot hide something like this because I know how villain transactions work. The second I burn the proof of our contract it will be off, along with the money. So how do I know I won’t be caught?”

Jessie and James’ smiles grow wider. “Well, sir, let us tell you…”

____________________________

“It was a pleasure doing business with you!” Hisashi closed the door and strolled back into the kitchen where many envelopes were stacked, each filled to the brim with money. He covered his mouth with a hand trying to stifle his laughter until he simply couldn’t anymore. 

“Those idiots!” he laughed out loud. “Do they really think they can take him?”

Hisashi shook his head. Inko and Inha were out on a walk. They came at the perfect time. Hisashi took the money and stored it beneath his bed mattress. Izuku is at Olympia’s right now. Olympia is the fifth top hero in the country. Izuku has been training to fight his whole life. Hisashi made sure that they said that he would not come home at the end of the week. If they seriously believe they are going to be able to defeat Olympia and his son together they have another thing coming for them.

That’s fine.

Hisashi is now five-hundred thousand up in money and his son will come back and he’ll still have his perfect little doll. Truly idiots.

____________________________

Izuku will admit, he’s a bit excited about sleeping in a real bed for a whole week. A WHOLE WEEK! The room he is staying in is a guest room in the back of the gym. A few of Olympia’s psychic students sleep stay here and she had an extra room. “I’ll give you a bit to settle in. Come down in your costume,” Olympia said and then left. As soon as the door closed Izuku and Chip made a mad dash to the bed.

He flopped down on it and it was soft! He put his whole body on it and it was longer than him! His feet didn’t hang off of it or anything! The blankets went over his legs and the pillows- oh my gosh the pillows -were so fluffy he almost passed out as soon as his head hit them. _Them_. THERE WERE THREE! There is a bedside table with a little lamp and alarm clock and a dresser for clothes. How amazing is that?! The bathrooms and kitchenette was shared by all who stay down the hall from his room and guess what?

Izuku went to check out the guy’s bathrooms and there. Were. SHOWERS. _With_ , because you can’t forget the with, _hot water_. Even the sinks have hot water!

“This week is going to be so amazing!” he exclaims as he and Chip get dressed. “Eevee ee!” Chip chirps back. Izuku slides on the new gloves, boots, and head gear. There were even a copy for Chip. “Walk around a bit.” Chip does and a second later vibrations came up his feet and legs. “Get further?” The vibrations were lighter. “This’ll take some getting used to,” he muses, “but it’s better than being basically blind. Let’s go. We don’t want to keep Olympia waiting!”

____________________________

Olympia waits, her blue-haired assistant, Sheryl, by her side, in the gym arena. Her visions come in spurts and they usually aren’t very detailed. As such, she had no idea the boy was next to blind. He can see well enough to walk but when she first showed him the arena he tapped his foot forward as though he didn’t really know if the floor was something his eyes were messing up or not. It makes her question if that is why she saw him shrouded in darkness in her vision. She doesn’t think so. It felt deeper than that. It felt more painful than that. It felt-

The door to the gym opened and she was met with a white-clad Midoriya and Eevee. It felt like the scars that littered the boy’s exposed skin. As soon as she saw him, her eyes flew open in another vision.

Flashes of fire. Blood splattering walls and floors alike. Smoke that blocked out the sky. Shining fangs and sharp claws. Screams that echoed in her ears. A maniacl laughter that seemed to cover over the cries of a child.

“-mpia? Madame Olympia?”

She was startled out of her vision by the voice of the boy, far closer now. She redirected her eyes down to him. Olympia can’t be sure, she’s never had visions of the past before, but she is pretty sure _that_ was the darkness she saw the boy shrouded in within her original vision a week ago.

She shakes her head. “It is nothing, Midoriya. Simply a vision. Shall we begin?”

She would call UA later tonight. She knows her words care merit to them for her visions have never been wrong. If she is correct about this one as well then this is something that UA needs to know. For now, she would gage his level of skill. It is one thing to see it in person against seeing it on screen.

Olympia tries to start slow but as soon as she does it is like a switch flipped in the young boy’s brain. He is vicious, fights dirty as though his life depends on it. Even when he is knocked down and Olympia tries to give him time to rest he won’t. He is rolling to his feet and running at her again. It’s tiring just watching him. Finally, she has to put an end to this.

“Meowstic, please freeze him and his Eevee.”

Using their psychic powers together, Midoriya and Eevee are frozen in place mid-attack. She had asked them to stay in their normal forms today. She does plan on seeing if they can evolve into Espeon since she didn’t see it in the Sports Festival but for now that will have to wait.

“That is enough for now,” she states. Midoriya blinks. “W- we can keep going!” he pleads. Olympia shakes her head. “I do not want you wearing yourself out on the first day. For now, let us go over what you did well and didn’t do well on.” The Meowstics let him go. Midoriya and Eevee hang their heads. “W- we’ll do better next time…”

They are shaking. Scared, perhaps? Olympia shakes her head. “You did fine, young boy. This is simply about the human body needing a break. Now come, let us discuss.”

____________________________

Izuku doesn’t know how to feel about suddenly stopping training when he isn’t bleeding out or unconscious.

Did he do something wrong? Will she tell Mr. Midoriya what a lost cause he is? Then what? What else does he have to give to protect everyone? What does he have left?

He and Chip are sent to bed that night unsure. They didn’t fight again, simply made plans for what was to come tomorrow. What he supposes is a good thing is the food. He was fed today. Izuku wasn’t expecting to be fed today. He messed up, after all. Even when he doesn’t mess up he typically isn’t fed. The meal was good. _Warm_. But it was also a lot. It made his stomach feel as though it were being stretched. Not necessarily a bad thing, just that he isn’t quite used to it. Either way, he has a different set of problems to deal with now.

Izuku sits on the bed and peels off his white vest. The white shirt underneath has a red spot around his left ribs. The stitches had come undone. They had been doing so well too. He and Chip had put them in last Thursday but with the more rigorous training at home, the rough training as a hero student, and then practicing with Madame Olympia today, he supposes it is only natural it would tear open again. Izuku winces as he pulls off his shirt. Oh, it ripped alright. He felt it when he skidded on the ground mid-fight but he was so used to putting pain in the back of his head he sort of forgot until dinner. Well, what was a piece of thread and a couple of staples going to do anyway?

“Chip, can you get the spare?” he asks. “Vee!” Chip trots over to his bag and pulls out a plastic baggy. Izuku moves to the floor. He’d hate ruining such a nice bed. The staple on top had come out and was now dangling by the blood-soaked thread. Izuku squeezed his eyes shut tightly as Chip delicately pulled the bottom staple out between two teeth. The Eevee held a dry washcloth, stained from past wounds with blood, to his ribs as Izuku threaded the needle with his spare thread. He bit down on a t-shirt stuffed in his mouth as he threaded it in and out of his skin, pulling the two sides together. “Okay,” he panted. He reached down and picked up a spare staple. He winced a bit as he pushed down, piercing it through his skin. “Chip?” Chip nodded and leaned over. He bit down, teeth protruding into Izuku just a bit as he did so to close the staple. His teeth caused blood to draw but it was better that little bit than bleeding from a wound large enough to need to be sewn up. They did the same with the bottom staple.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how Izuku and Chip take care of their wounds.

Not sanitary in any way. Not medically correct in any way. But they haven’t died yet. You learn fast when you are on the brink of death.

Chip had to pack everything up which Izuku felt bad for but he couldn’t move without much pain right now. He needed to let his body adjust around the thread for a few minutes before moving. When he did, he decided to plug in Aizawa’s phone. It felt weird doing something others would consider so mundane. He hears it all of the time.

_‘Sorry, I forgot to charge my phone last night.’_

Or

_‘My phone’s dead?! I knew I should have charged it!’_

Even though he knows it isn’t his and Aizawa will ask for it back soon enough when he realizes Izuku won’t use it, it’s nice to be normal for one. Izuku reaches in his costume case and slides on his head gear, turning it on. He waves his hand in front of him. The outlines of the room show closely to his face. _Normal, huh? A bed, a dresser, a bedside table. There is warm water down the ha-_

Izuku’s eyes widen. He takes off the head gear and looks at Chip. “There is warm water!” Chip looks up and his rainbow eyes brighten. OOOOOH. You _know_ they ran down the hall to the showers faster than their bodies should allow.

Only to realize they don’t know how to work a shower. _Why is there only one knob? H and C? Where’s the faucet? Does it do both? How do you know which is what?_

That’s okay. They know how to use a sink. They are lucky no one came in because Izuku and Chip sat on the floor in the middle of the men’s bathroom and relished in wiping themselves down with warm water and bar soap for a good thirty minutes before going to the room feeling super duper refreshed.

Izuku’s misgivings about his ‘pajamas’ being shorts being basically short enough and tight enough to be little kid’s underwear and his t-shirt basically being a crop top, because _someone_ burned all of the clothes that fit him aside form his uniform, all blow away when he lays down on the bed. He almost forgets to set the alarm. It takes a good ten minutes for him to figure out how to do that before he _finally_ turns off the lamp and shuts his eyes.

Oooooooooooh it’s so warm in the room. It’s so comfortable. He might just sleep forever. 

____________________________

Olympia pulls out the letter she got from UA along with the one stating that Midoriya would be with her for the week. She read over it again.

_‘Dear, Madame Olympia,_

_We thank you for taking in Midoriya Izuku for the week. We hate to have to ask much more of you as we are sure you are very busy with your own agenda but we would like to request a favor about you in regards to the boy you will have charge over for the week. We have reason to believe that he is in an abusive home but are lacking in evidence. Your profession, quirk, and credibility being what they are, we ask that while you have charge over him you would look for and report anything you think may constitute as evidence of his home situation being abusive. Thank you once again for taking Midoriya under your wing for the internship week._

_Sincerely,_

_Principal Nedzu.’_

Olympia picked up her phone. After three rings, it picked up. “Principal Nedzu,” she greeted, “I do not know if this constitutes as evidence regarding your letter but I had a vision earlier today I think may be useful for your files.”

____________________________

Izuku is _thriving_ off of sleep and eating and ooooh warm water! He can’t get enough of it! It hurts a bit to eat right now, though. A few of Olympia’s students are beginning to get concerned though as to why he and Chip haven’t been finishing their meals. It’s not that they don’t _want_ to. It’s just that there is just _so much food_! Three days in and they feel like they might just combust. Today, however, Izuku and Olympia are going out. She is taking him around Anistar City to show him how a psychic specialist patrols.

Currently, Izuku and Chip are in their Espeon form and hero costumes. They trained all day with it, well, until he had a spasm. Being forced to train his evolutions with Mr. Midoriya had begun to edge his time a bit from twenty minutes to around half an hour. The only difference is that Olympia had him stop while Mr. Midoriya made him fight in his tense, disoriented state which led to a lot more injuries and Izuku is sure some brain damage wiggled it’s way in there because he would have up to three spasms a night when training with the man. He’s had two with Olympia but with, like, three hour pauses in between, gratefully.

Izuku’s Espeon form consists of pastel purple hair, light blue eyes, and most recently a small red orb like the one on an actual Espeon’s forehead has begun to grow on his own.

Olympia has been teaching him to use psychic powers to see as well in this form so that’s nice.

“Izuku?”

Izuku, Chip, Olympia, and her Meowstics all turn around. He blinks once, twice, and then- “Serena?” It’s not a question of who moves first, the two just meet in the middle, Chip and Fennekin colliding too. “I haven’t seen you in forever!” Izuku exclaims. Serena grins. “Same! Well, aside from the video call at the Sports Festival but what did you dooooo?!” She reached forward and felt his ears. Izuku blushed and looked down. “I- It’s nothing…” Serena paused.

“Izuku,” she whispered, “is this why you stopped designing?” He went rigid. She shakes her head. “Never mind. I’m not angry, really. I’m just worried about you, you know?” The greenette scratches the back of his head. “I’m okay. Really. Anyway, why are you here? This is like seven hours away from Shalour City.”

She grinned and rifled through her bag before holding up a key. “Look and be amazed! I competed in my second Tripolka Contest here yesterday and won!” Izuku beamed. “That’s amazing! Did you wear-” He cut himself off. Serena pats his shoulder. “I wore your costume, Izuku. I don’t know why you stopped but I look forward to your next one.” He smiles sadly.

_I want too, Serena… I want to so badly… I’m so sorry…_

Olympia cleared her throat. “A friend of yours, Midoriya?” Izuku jumped. “I am so sorry!” he bowed deeply. Serena looked a bit stunned by his respect he was showing towards an adult. _Believe me, I don’t like it either._ But she was more surprised by- “M- M- MADAME OLYMPIA!” Izuku winced. _Ah… Here we go again._ After introductions, Olympia did let Serena join them for about fifteen minutes. She introduced Izuku to Pancham, the small panda pokemon she caught. Color him impressed. Before long, though, she had to go to her hotel. Izuku was sad to bid her farewell, Serena promising to introduce him to her dormmate, Millefeui, next time, but he was glad he and Chip were able to see her and Fennekin again and to meet Pancham.

“Thank you for letting her join the patrol,” Izuku murmured. Olympia nodded. “Let us call it a PR project.”

“PR?”

“‘Public Relations,’” the woman explains. “In other terms, getting the public to like you. I do it through my predictions and classes. Many heroes you will see do charity events for theirs.” Izuku nods. “Makes sense.”

_Maybe I could do PR events catering towards the quirkless or the elementless when I am a pro? Would Mr. Midoriya let me?_ He shakes his head. _No. He hates the elementless community. Why? What did we do wrong? We didn’t do anything wrong so why does he have to- Izuku, stop._ He takes a deep breath. _It’s okay. You can’t do anything about that. Just obey and keep going on. It will be okay. It will be okay. It will be okay. See? There you go. Everything is OkAy._

He and Olympia begin to head back to the gym. “What is that?” He looks up at her question as they are nearing the gym. “What do you mean?” It takes a bit but the _smoke_ rises high and high to where it is unavoidable to his eyes as it blocks out the blue of the sky. “Let’s go, Midoriya.” They two rush forward, busting into the gym and into the arena.

“ **Well, well, well, what do we have here?** ” Two people turn around in the middle of the arena. A hole was blown through the roof creating the smoke rising up. All around were Olympia’s sleeping students, knocked unconscious by who knows what. The two figures in the middle consisted of a male and a female. The male had light purple hair that went down to his shoulders and the female had long pink hair. Around them were a few pokemon. A Meowth between them, a Wobbuffet and a Gourgeist to the right of the girl and an Inkay to the right of the male. They were glad in black and white matching costumes, the woman with a crop top and shirt though in favor of the man’s shirt and pants.

“What are you doing here, Rocket Duo?” Olympia spat. Izuku has never heard her so irked before. “So we are famous, I see?” the woman laughed. “Jessie, James, and Meowth, that’s right! We are the Rocket _Trio_ , thank you very much!” Olympia narrowed her eyes. “You are notorious for your pokemon thievery crimes.” Izuku’s never heard of them but then again, he lives in Vaniville Town stuck in a basement. Don’t expect him to know much. The pinkette, Jessie, points at him. “To be frank, we are here for him so why don’t you just fork him over and no one has to get hurt.” Izuku tensed, sliding into a battle position. Olympia put her arm out in front of him. “What business do you have with Midoriya?”

The man, James, sighed. “We don’t have time for this. Inkay, psybeam.” The squid-like pokemon flipped upside down and let loose the attack. “Meowstic, light screen.” The male Meowstic’s ears flipped up and a screen of bright light blocked the attack. “Future sight.” The two together put up their energies for an attack that is special to them that would happen later. “As I said, _Why?_ ” Jessie narrowed her eyes before smirking. “Well, technically, he belongs to us now so you are the one’s doing something illegal right now.” Izuku blinked. _What?_ She laughed.

“ **That’s right! Your daddy-dearest sold you to us two days ago!** ” Viridian eyes widened. “How does it feel to know that you are only worth five hundred grand, huh?”

Izuku’s mind went blank. _He… sold me?_

Olympia growled. “Stop spouting nonsense!” “Oh, we aren’t!” the man called back. He pointed at Izuku. “He knows it too. Your father doesn’t love you at all, does he? I can’t guarantee it will be much better but I can say what we will do to you won’t be much different than what he already does!” Izuku stumbled back, clutching his head. He couldn’t believe this. Olympia deflected another attack away from the stunned boy.

_So what was it all for then? What was he using me for? I was the barrier between him and the others, right? If he would just sell me off like this then was it all a lie? Will he actually hurt them? No… Was that just a lie too?_ Anger bubbled up in him. _So that’s it? I’m just disposable? Ha. I guess I already knew that, didn’t I. He was just having fun. Inha… Mrs. Midoriya… It was all just a LIE!_

A screech from one of the Meowstics drew his attention up. Infrared lights were flying across his vision so fast he could barely make it out. 

“You don’t have to make this difficult!” Jessie sighed. “I thought your daddy had trained you to be better than this. To _obey_ him.”

Izuku blinked. _Obey?_

\-----

_‘What are you going to do today?’_

_‘Go to UA.’_

_‘And?’_

_‘Make a good name.’_

_‘After?’_

_‘_ **_Come straight back._ ** _’_

\-----

Izuku lowered his head, a low chuckle simmering on his lips. _Ah, the idiots. They obviously don’t know Mr. Midoriya. I take orders from him and as far as I’m concerned_ , Izuku’s hair roared to life in flames, Chip apparently thinking the same thing, _my orders are to come home!_

Izuku and his now-Flareon rushed forward. “Midor-” “Cover me!” he shouted at his mentor. The Rocket Trio smirked. “Guess we are doing this the hard way,” the pinkette said. “Chip, flamethrower!”

“Wobbuffet, be a dear.” The blue pokemon stood in the way preparing to send it back. Chip and Izuku spun around it. Chip’s flames let loose at point blank on the Gourgeist, the pumpkin pokemon screeching and falling to the ground. Izuku’s hand ignited as he grabbed the Inkay from the air, spun around, and threw it at the Meowth. “What the-!” The greenette almost stumbled when the Meowth _spoke_ and jumped out of the way. The flames on Inkay caught its tail. “Eeeek! Put it out! Put it out!” “Meowth!” James ran forward, trying to catch it. Chip got beneath his feet and tripped him. The pink-haired woman threw out her hand. “Possession!” Izuku’s mind fogged over. Jessie’s laugh echoed in his ears. “Let’s see what this body can do.”

He felt himself move on his own. _No… I have to stop!_ “What on earth?!” Jessie’s voice screamed as she lost hold of the control of the evolution. _That’s right. She doesn't know how to control this!_ With a scream, Jessie was kicked from his brain, her real body rolling on the ground. “It burns!” James, having put out Meowth’s tail, looked up at him in fury. “What did you do?” Izuku felt his body begin to shake. It did burn. He had lost control of it when his body was taken over. Luckily for him, Izuku is _used_ to the searing pain. 

“Midoriya, Eevee, move!” Olympia yelled. Just then, two swirling vortexes appeared above the Rocket Trio, the Meowstic’s Future Sights. James grabbed Jessie’s arm. “We have to move!” “Psychic, hold them in place!” Olympia ordered. Together, the Meowstics froze all of the villains in place and two beams of energy from the vortexes shot out.

* **!!!BOOM!!!** *

The villains screeched. James staggered to his feet, pressing a button to the earpiece in his ear. “We need to retreat. Something went wrong with the possession.” Olympia ran forward. “Oh no you don’t!” But a purple vortex, one familiar to Izuku from the USJ attack, opened up underneath the villains. “We’ll be back,” James grunted. “Tell daddy-dearest hi for us.” And they disappeared.

…

…

…

“Midoriya,” Olympia turned to him. “We have to notify UA.” Izuku stumbled back, clutching his head. “N- no way…” he whispered. Chip released the form and they fell to their knees. Olympia walked up to him. “Are you okay?” He jolted.

_Okay?_ A chuckle bubbled from his throat. “Y- yeah, I’m _okay_. I j- just need some time. Sorry,” he stood up, scooping up Chip. “W- we’ll be in our room.” She didn’t stop them. Izuku sprinted as far away as he could. He slammed their room door closed and collapsed to the ground.

_He sold me! After everything he freaking sold me!_ He clutched his head, pressing it to the ground. “Ch- Chip… I can’t- I don’t- What am I s- supposed to do?!” The Eevee whimpered quietly. Tears streamed down his face. Izuku sat up. He couldn’t pierce himself, he couldn’t draw, he couldn’t scream or cry like in the basement. He couldn’t even have a proper panic attack so instead he just stared at the ceiling letting his airways get cut off.

_Is that how much I am really worth? Just an object to be sold off like this?_

His mind fogged over from lack of air. _I’m done… I’m just… done…_ _I guess I really don’t have any choice over my life. I thought I already knew that. Sell me then. I don’t care anymore._ Izuku’s eyes rolled back in his head and he fell to the ground.

_I’m done._

  
  
  
  
**-WARNING: NEARING BEGINNING OF MENTION RAPE-**   
  


Izuku’s internship was cut off early. There was no proof of the transaction between the Rocket Trio and Mr. Midoriya. Mr. Midoriya probably burned it when he heard that Izuku was coming home. He’s smart. Mr. Midoriya doesn’t just leave evidence like that laying around. Izuku and Chip weren’t prepared to go home yet. What are they supposed to say? They suppose they will find out when they get there.

It wasn’t only their internship that was cut off early. Uraraka’s, Todoroki’s, and Iida’s too. They were all three badly injured by Stain in an attack on Hosu. Stain, a villain that has been going around killing heroes in the name of justice. To some extent, Izuku admires the man, being able to do that but in the end he wound up in jail so where did it get him? Nowhere. The three students were receiving treatment in Hosu currently. Aizawa tried to talk to him and Chip when they got back to UA but it fell on deaf ears. It was a mix of begging and pleading, asking Izuku for a testimony, anything they could use to stop him from returning home.

Why? What do they care? After all, Izuku is just a doll to be molded, used, and then sold. It’s all fake. As fake as Mr. Midoriya’s lies. What if Izuku really hadn’t come back? Then what? Would he turn to Inha and Mrs. Midoriya? Was his role in their protection that fragile? Apparently, it wasn’t even needed. For eleven years he was strung along and now? Now Izuku knew nothing better, So he boarded the subway, sat on it numbly for two hours, got off at Aquacorde Town, boarded the bus for an hour, and got off on the edge of Vaniville Town. It was mid-evening by the time they arrived. Izuku didn’t attempt to even look around at his surroundings, just letting muscle memory guide him home. Whatever sight he had left was blinded by sheer unwillingness to look at the town that had forgotten him and Chip.

He stood outside of the Midoriya household. He lifted a hand and * **knock** * * **knock** * * **knock** *’ed on the door. A few moments later, it opened. “ **Welcome back** ,” Mr. Midoriya greeted, like he knew Izuku would be. Izuku slowly walked in. His feet dragged behind the man as he was led back to the basement.

Now that he thinks about it, looking around at the basement, his _house_ , it is truly like a cage, isn’t it? Befitting for a ‘mutt’ like him to be held until he is thrown at his next owner. Still, he had to know. The greenette looked over his shoulder at the man that long, long ago he used to call his ‘father.’

“Why…?” he asked. He felt so, so small. Mr. Midoriya laughed loudly. He didn’t even _care_ . “Why?! Do you seriously think I give two flying feathers about what happens to you?” _No…_ “I thought to myself, ‘I minus well get some money off of ya.’” Izuku’s fists shook by his side. “Th- then what about protecting Inha and Mrs. Midoriya?”

“ **Did you seriously think I would hurt them?** ”

Izuku went rigid. Footsteps echoed through the basement as Mr. Midoriya rounded to face Izuku head on. He crouched before the boy. “Let’s get this straight, Akatani. I don’t care about you but up there is a perfect family I have created. I would never hurt them but you? I _despise_ you. Do you know how _embarrassing_ it is having to claim you as my son legally? Elementless, quirkless, and the offspring of that whore of a wife I had. I’ve fixed her. Now I just need to fix you. You know how I am going to do that?”

Izuku did respond so Mr. Midoriya did it for him.

“I’ve made some money off of you,” Mr. Midoriya states. “I knew you would come back. You always do because even if I won’t hurt Inha or Inko, you know who I have no qualms about hurting? Your friends. Don’t think I don’t have connections in Shalour City. Serena could be wiped off the face of this planet in an instant.” Izuku grit his teeth. He knows this already. He _knows_ what the man wants. He wants submission.

Izuku doesn’t have food to give. Water to give. Light to give. Love to give. He doesn’t have sight and at this point he doesn’t have sanity to give any longer. But apparently he has one last thing to give if he can be sold off to people so easily.

“What do you want?” he asks quietly. Mr. Midoriya ran his finger down Izuku’s jaw, forcing the boy to look up at him. “Oh, Akatani,” he coos, “I am going to make such a profit off of you.” He stands. “But first-” * **BAM** * Izuku is on his knees in a second, clutching his stomach. He hears the sound of a belt unbuckling and looks up. Mr. Midoriya’s pants fall around his ankles. “I need to see just how good you are in bed.” Viridian eyes widen. His heart stops. Chip cries out, being held back by Smokey who is curled around the Eevee, trying to block his view of what is about to happen.

Izuku doesn’t have food, water, light, warmth, family, love, sight, and at this point, he doesn’t have sanity to give either. But Mr. Midoriya wants a profit so Izuku must have something to give to protect Serena, Hitoshi, Nurse Joy, Uraraka, Ash, Todoroki, and Aizawa. At fifteen years old, Izuku discovers the last thing he has left on the night it is taken from him along with his last slip of sanity:

**His body.**

____________________________

Chip thrashes against Smokey but to little avail. The Houndoom keeps on apologizing. Chip can feel him shaking. He doesn’t want this either. Chip _knows_ he doesn’t want this but right in Chip’s line of sight, buried under dark fur is a scar on Smokey’s body, large and expansive. It is a reminder that it isn’t only Chip and Izuku being abused in this house. He can’t see what is happening but he can hear it.

The grunts and groans from Mr. Midoriya as he rapes Chip’s boy. The cries and screams from Izuku as his virginity is forcibly taken from him. It eats Chip up inside. He can’t do anything to stop it.

Long ago, back when he was first adopted and brought to this house, he remembers the same sounds that would erupt from somewhere in the house back when they still lived up there. Mr. Midoriya would rape his wife like this too, abusing her to the point where her mind broke.

Chip has to wonder if after tonight, the same will happen to Izuku. He wonders if it is better that way. To just let it go. Let it happen. Pretend like it's okay just like always. Maybe Izuku will find some peace if he lets that bit of sanity Chip has tried to preserve for so long go. Maybe he will find peace.

When the sounds finally cease, Smokey is called upon but before he uncurls and frees Chip, he whisper: “Call Aizawa.” Mr. Midoriya can’t understand him. “You have his phone. Call him. Hisashi plans to bring more people here to rape him. Izuku won’t be able to hold up. I beg of you, call him.”

“Smokey,” Mr. Midoriya growls. The Houndoom whimpers and uncurls, releasing Chip. At the top of the stairs, Mr. Midoriya looks back down and laughs. “This is just the beginning, Akatani. I’ll make you regret ever living.” And the door closes.

\-----

_‘Call Aizawa.’_

\-----

Chip looks over at his human. Izuku lays on the cold ground naked, eyes blown wide, body shaking. From between his legs drip a mix of white and red liquid. From his lips Chip hears it, so, so quietly:

_“It’s okay… It’s okay… It’s okay…”_

It doesn’t get louder and it doesn’t get quieter. It’s just that.

_“It’s okay… It’s okay… It’s okay…”_

Chip nudges Izuku’s shoulder. “Get up,” he whimpers.

_“It’s okay… It’s okay… It’s okay…_ ”

Chip feels tears well in his eyes. He can’t do anything to help Izuku. He can’t protect him. He’s too weak. There has to be someone, anyone that can fix this. Chip hangs his head, tears dripping on the floor as his trainer’s voice fills the silence of the basement.

\-----

_‘Call Aizawa.’_

\-----

Chip can no longer sit back and let this happen. He can’t let Mr. Midoriya break Izuku. He thought that it would be enough if they just continued on like always. He would bring Izuku back to saneness every time he broke and in another two and a half years they would be out and even if they had to pay their earnings to Mr. Midoriya they would no longer be abused nightly. He thought it would be enough.

He was wrong.

For years he’s watched it happen. Izuku’s been cracking ever so slowly. His wall of ‘Okay’’s has been slowly getting disassembled by the hands of Mr. Midoriya and now, after all is said and done, this is what is left of a once happy, smiling child: a deathly thin, freezing, naked shell of a boy. _I’m sorry, Izuku. I can’t comply with your request to stay silent any longer. I will-_

_\-----_

_‘Call Aizawa.’_

\-----

Chip runs to Izuku’s bag, struggling a bit to open it before taking the bottom in his mouth and dumping its contents on the floor. _Where is it? Where is it?!_ A thin, black rectangle catches his eye. Aizawa’s phone. _Bingo_. Chip himself can’t open it or call anyone but Izuku can.

Izuku’s brain is very systematic. It’s been hit so many times that it relies on cues to continue actions. As such, even in his state, Chip knows that if he can just get Izuku to do the motions on the phone with his hand, eventually the word ‘Call Hizashi’ will come out of the boy’s mouth. If he times it correctly and presses Izuku’s finger to the microphone just before the boy says it, it will automatically call the man. He can only pray to whatever high power is up there that it works. Chip takes the phone gently between his jaws so as not to crack it. He carries it over to Izuku and drops it into the boy’s palm. He goes through the motions that Izuku copied every night after Aizawa gave them the device. He nudges Izuku’s thumb against the side of it.

\-----

_‘Here is the power button and volume.’_

\-----

“ _It’s okay… It’s okay… It’s okay…”_

Chip presses in and the phone’s screen shines brightly in the dark. He nudges Izuku’s finger to the screen, picking it up and setting it down on each blurry number.

\-----

_‘This is the password.’_

\-----

_“It’s okay… It’s okay… It’s okay…”_

Chip presses Izuku’s thumb to the microphone button.

\-----

_‘Hold this down and say ‘Call Hizashi’ and either I or Present Mic will pick up.’_

\-----

_“It’s okay… It’s okay… It’s okay…”_

The phone beeps, stating loudly: “ _Sorry, I could not find any links under ‘It is okay.’_ ” Chip mentally curses. _Again._

He does this again and again and against.

_“It’s okay… It’s okay… Call… It’s okay…”_

_“Sorry, I could not find any contacts under ‘It’s okay.’”_ Chip’s eyes widened. AGAIN! Again and again until finally, _finally_ , Izuku’s mouth opened, Chip pressed the boy’s thumb to the screen, and instead of ‘It’s okay’ the words “Call Hizashi” came out of the greenette’s mouth. The phone dinged. “ _Calling Hizashi.”_

**_*_ ** **riiiiing** * * **riiiiing** * * **riii** -* * **click** *

“ **Hello?** **Izuku?** ”

At the sound of Aizawa’s voice, Izuku’s dull viridian eyes sparked. The quiet murmuring of ‘It’s okay’’s changed into a broken sob and somehow, even though nothing had happened yet, Chip knew that this time, for the first time in eleven years,

it would truly be okay.


	17. Greedy Shall Be Your Downfall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's happening!!!!!! Lol.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone feeling?!?! YEEEEEHAWWWWW!!!

_ Wrong… _

_ Wrong… _

_ Wro- Seriously, Kaminari? WRONG! _

Shouta sighs, stretching his arms over his head. He can’t bother to grade such stupidity any longer. He will finish up grading tomorrow. For now he has to worry about paperwork for the Stain incident and the Rocket Trio incident. Speaking of which… Shouta picks up Hizashi’s phone, checking the time.  _ It’s been about five hours. Izuku should have gotten home two hours ago. I hope everything is alright… _

* **riiiiing** *

Shouta jumped, almost dropping the phone when it suddenly lit up. He checked the caller ID.  **!!!SHOUTA!!!** Shouta’s eyes widened. That’s his phone!

* **riiiiing** *

Izuku’s calling. Shouta’s heart rams in his chest. He wants nothing more than to pick it up and ask all sorts of questions but if Izuku is calling then something must be terribly wrong. He can’t pick it up frantically. Shouta forces himself to take a deep breath before picking it up.

* **riii** -* * **click** * “Hello?” he starts quietly, standing up. “Izuku?” Shouta moves down the hall in his new house and opens the door to the guest room where Hizashi is staying because Shouta has his phone. The blonde looks up. Shouta’s face says it all. Contact Nedzu. NOW.

The phone is silent for a moment more before he hears it: a broken sob. It’s so sad, so painful at point blank in Shouta’s ear. His heart breaks. Shouta enters the kitchen and swipes the prepared voice recorder off of the kitchen counter, turning it on. He pulls the phone from his ear and puts it on speaker mode. “Izuku,” he speaks quietly into the phone, “I need you to breathe with me, okay?” A purposeful choice of words.

“ _ O- ay,”  _ Izuku’s voice breaks over the mic in between sobs. “ _ Ok- y. Okay. -kay.” _

Shouta grits his teeth. Even without seeing the boy he can tell that Izuku is completely out of it. Hizashi is rushing out of the guest room. He flashes his car keys to Shouta and jerks his head. Shouta nods, grabbing his briefcase filled with the compiled evidence and leaves after Hizashi. They had planned this well in advance. If Shouta knows Hizashi well enough, Nemuri, the other UA teachers, Nedzu, and Detective Tsukauchi have all already been emailed and they should all be meeting up at the school at this very moment. They don’t have time to waste because if Izuku is calling he could very well be on the brink of death and it is a three hour trip To Vaniville Town.

Sure, they could be calling Officer June down there but one, Shouta doesn’t trust her if she has seen Izuku his whole life and not reported anything and two, they need the three hour trip to write and file the report case. By the time they get there it should be done and the search warrant and warrant to remove Izuku from the house should be complete. For now, Shouta is in the car, Hizashi driving, and trying to calm Izuku down with gentle reassurances. It’s a thirty minute drive to UA and it is only as they are finally pulling in that Izuku’s breathing has gotten down to what Shouta thinks is a semi-normal rate but it is hard to tell over the phone. As expected, heroes are lining the halls waiting for him.

Izuku doesn’t know it, his anger towards adults blinding him, but this has been a group effort. They have all spent hours upon hours in tense silence, collecting evidence, just  _ waiting _ for this call to happen and now it has.

“Shh… it’s okay,” Shouta whispers, sitting down in the conference room, the others joining. It is deafly silent, no one wanting to alert the boy on the other side of their presence as the phone is on speaker mode.

“ _ I- It- Aiza- He-” _ Izuku’s voice comes out in incoherent sentences. Shouta hums. “I know, Izuku, I know. I’m here. I can be there in three hours. Can you hold on that long?” he asks.  _ “Aizawa, I- He- I don’t want-  _ **_It felt weird._ ** _ ”  _

Everyone in the room stiffened. Being in the underground hero world, Shouta has dealt with many rape cases, prevented many, and been too late to many. That phrase, Shouta and almost every other hero knows it well. It is how many rape victims describe what happened to them. It is unfamiliar, disgusting, unwanted, and-

“ _ I- it h- h- hurt. Everything h- hurts,”  _ Izuku chokes. Shouta’s fists are white they are so tightly curled. “Izuku, what happened?” he forces his voice to be calm.  _ “I- it’s not l- like this normally- H- he said h- he wanted t- to make money o- off me s- s- so he had to ‘try me i- in bed.’” _ AKA: MR. MIDORIYA IS TRYING TO PROSTITUTE HIS SON.

“What is normal, Izuku?” Shouta asks.

_ “K- kicking, punching, b- b- burning, b- blood,”  _ Tsukauchi’s pen is fast on paper writing all of this down. Shouta nods. The fact that Izuku is saying all of this, he must be really shaken up and Shouta doesn’t blame him. Mr. Midoriya literally tried and failed to sell him to villains and when it didn’t work he raped him. Shouta is  _ furious _ . How do you do that to your own son? How do you do that to any living thing in general?!

“Izuku, I know it is hard,” he whispers, “I know it hurts and you are really scared and confused right now. I just need you to answer these next questions honestly. Can you do that for me? Just yes or no answers?”

_ “C- can you promise…?”  _ Shouta blinks. “Promise what?  _ “Th- that they will be safe.” _ Shouta swallows a sigh. Of  _ course _ Izuku is thinking about that. Of course… it has been what has tethered him down this long. Shouta takes a deep breath. “Izuku, I swear, give your testimony now all of your friends, all of those people you are trying to protect, not a single hair on their head will be harmed. Do you trust me?”

…

…

…

“ **Yes.** ”

Shouta could have cried right then and there but now was not the time. Izuku’s voice was weaker than before. He was fading. Shouta needs to get the testimony now while the boy is still lucid. “Izuku,” he starts, “have you been getting beaten by Midoriya Hisashi?”

“Y- yes.”

“Are you able to tell us what all that entails?” He stands, everyone doing the same. With this, they are all rushing to their cars. This is a one and done deal. It is happening  _ now _ .

“N- Yes but...”

Shouta purses his lips. “That’s okay, you can tell us later. For now, let me ask you this: Did Midoriya Hisashi try and sell you to villains?”

“... Yes.”

“And did he rape you?” Shouta almost didn’t want to hear the answer.

“ **Yes.** ”

He clenched his fists. They were pulling out of UA now. He takes a deep breath. “Izuku, you did good,” he reassures the boy. “You did so good. I am so proud of you. We are coming. Three hours. Can you hold on for three hours?”... “Izuku?” … “Izuku, speak to me!”

“Eevee…” Chip whimpered in the phone. Shouta cursed. “Step on it!” he ordered. Hizashi needed no extra orders. The heroes would break the law just this once to get there as quick as possible. “Chip,” Shouta said quietly, “you’ll protect him, right? Please, just keep him together until we get there. I will do the rest.” “Eevee.”

For three excruciating hours did Shouta talk on that phone about anything and everything. A few times he got a hum or two but he couldn’t tell if Izuku was responding or just asleep. On the way, Tsukauchi was making the reports, getting them approved, and having a digital warrant sent over to his computer. When the  _ battalion  _ pulled into the small town of Vaniville it was already pitch black outside. It was nearing eleven at night now. Tsukauchi and Hizashi exited Hizashi’s car and ran into the Pokemon Center where Hope was already waiting with her printer set up as they could print out the warrant upon arrival.

“We are almost there, Izuku,” Shouta says into the phone that has not responded in over an hour now. Even the short five minute drive from the Pokemon Center to the Midoriya household felt like an eternity. As soon as they pulled up, Shouta leapt out of the car. “I’m here. Hanging up now.” He hung up and tossed the phone at Hizashi. Shouta didn’t wait. He ripped the warrant from Tsukauchi’s hands and stormed right up to that door Shouta lifted his foot and slammed it against the door so hard it splintered and flew open with a * **BAM** *.

A little girl screamed. Mr. Midoriya’s face popped out of the living room. “What is going on?!” Shouta’s eyes lit red and his hair floated as he activated his quirk. He holds up the warrant.

“ **Midoriya Hisashi, you are under arrest for child abuse and rape.** ”

The man is furious. “Excuse me?! I haven’t done anything! Hey, get out!” Heroes are filing in. “Hisashi?” Mrs. Midoriya and Inha are in the living room cowering. Shouta almost feels bad for them. “Inko, get Inha out of here!” Mr. Midoriya orders but Nemuri and Snipe are already ushering them out. Mr. Midoriya struggles. “Let go!” * **Boom** * * **Boom** * * **Boom** * A rather massive Houndoom storms up, lifts its paw, and plants it in Mr. Midoriya back, smoke billowing from its nostrils. It looks up directly at Shouta and jerks its head. Shouta is inclined to follow but anyone else who tries is growled away. Hizashi puts his hand on his shoulder. “Go get Izuku. We’ve got this. Shouta nods and follows the Houndoom deeper into the house. He notices how none of the pictures have Izuku in it. Truly, his presence in this house is non-existent. Houndoom nudges open a closet. Shouta had expected to see Izuku laying in there bound or something but it was just a regular closet.

That is, until the pokemon pushed over a box full of weights and revealed a large, metal trap door. He inclines his head towards it. Shouta takes a deep breath and reaches down, opening it.

It reveals a steep staircase into a basement. He begins to descend down. The first thing he notices is how cold it is. The AC unit rattles in the corner blowing cold air throughout the basement. Then he realizes how dark it is. His eyes take a second to adjust to the few dim hanging lights from the ceiling. He notices the tang of old blood and smoke that seemed to permeate in the air. Then he notices the workout equipment, dirty with blood. He notices the blood on the walls next and that is when Shouta almost throws up.  _ It _ is everywhere.

He’s asked so many times what the word ‘Okay’ means to Izuku but he wasn’t ready for the answer. Shouta slowly spins in a circular motion, taking in the walls. That word, written in blood, covers almost every surface up to a certain height where Izuku could presumably no longer reach. It makes Shouta gag. It was so messed up.

“Eevee…”

Shouta is taken out of his shocked stupor by the weak call of Chip. His head spins around to the far left corner of the basement. He sprints over and falls to his knees. The far left corner consists of a worn out old mattress with holes in it, a thin pillow, a line of clothes that look fit for a six year old and a line of books, all lined up to make a box-like formation. On the floor, torso draped over the mattress, legs off, Izuku laid, a thin blue sheet dragged poorly over the lower part of his body, probably Chip’s doing. Chip ran up to him and jumped into his arms.

“Shh…” Shouta pets the pokemon’s head. “I’m here.” He sounds calm but in reality, Shouta is struggling to keep calm. He reaches down with his free hand and shakes Izuku’s arm. “Izuku, can you hear me?” The greenette blinks lazily but does nothing else. Shouta curses. Seeing the boy he has come to think of like a son like this is making it  _ really _ hard to not go rip Mr. Midoriya’s head off right now.

“Eraserhead! You need to get out! Now!” Ectoplasm yells from the top of the staircase. “Midoriya lit the house on fire! It’s coming down!”

Shouta’s black eyes widened.  _ WHAT?! _ He took out a pokeball and let out Absol. “Take Chip and run. Get him out. I will get Izuku.” The white dog-like pokemon nods. Chip shakes its head. “Don’t worry, Chip. Everything will be okay.” Shouta places the Eevee on Absol’s back. “Go!” Absol takes off.

Shouta turns his attention back to Izuku. He coughs as smoke begins to filter and get trapped in the basement. “Izuku,” he shakes the boy’s shoulder. The greenette’s mouth opens a bit only to take a small breath and close again. Shouta blinks away tears.  _ This is so wrong! _ He has to move though. He needs to get out. The raven-haired man takes Izuku into his arms, using the sheet to cover as much as the boy as he possibly can before turning and sprinting for the stairs. Izuku blinks. His hand reaches up and pats Shouta’s chest.

“Shou… ta…?” his voice is so, so small.

Shouta nods. “It’s me, kid. I’m getting you out of here.” He rushes up the stairs and- Oh. My. Goodness. His eyes  _ burn! _ He suddenly is very much aware of how Izuku lost his vision. Shouta reels back, squeezing his eyes shut. He coughs on smoke. Izuku looks up and his entire body stiffens.

“No…” the boy whimpers. And then louder. “NO!” He struggles in Shouta’s grasp. “Wh- Kid ! Calm down!”  _ It’s the fire _ , his mind helpfully supplies. “NO! PLEASE! NO!” Izuku is completely out of it. Shouta stumbles by the force of him pushing against him.

* **CrAcK** * * **FWOOSH** *

Shouta looks up as the burning door to the closet falls towards them. “Izuku!” He jumps, sheltering the boy from the flaming wood. It  _ burns _ ! Shouta bites his tongue. Izuku stares up at him with wide, frightened eyes. He tries his best to smile through the pain and blistering heat, ignoring the fact that Izuku seems completely unfazed by such heat. “S- see? I promised I would protect you.” Finally, something other than fear sparks in deep viridian. “I’m taking you away, Izuku,” he says above the roar of the flames. “Will you trust me?” Shouta holds out his hand. Tears fill Izuku’s eyes. He reaches forward, missing the mark. That’s okay. Shouta will gladly fill any distance between them. He reaches forward and pulls Izuku to his chest, standing once more. His back is bleeding heavily from the burning wood but he can’t think about that now. Right now he has to focus on getting them out of here alive.

Floorboards creak as a silhouette of honestly what looks like a devil hound storms to them through the flames. Houndoom burst through. He kneels down, jerking his head. “Doom!” Shouta nods. “Thank you.” He climbs on it’s back, using one arm to hold Izuku close to his chest and the other hand to hold on to Houndoom’s horns. The dog pokemon races through the fire with incredible speed. Shouta keeps his head low and holds his breath, trying to minimize smoke intake until  _ finally _ they burst into the open night.

“Over here!” There is already an ambulance waiting. Wind whips through his hair as the Houndoom runs. Shouta feels Izuku shift, looking back at it. It is like a scene from a documentary. The whole house is on fire, the bright flames reaching high into the night sky. The town firefighters are trying to put it out. A few of the closer neighbors have come out to see. From the corner of his eye, Shouta catches a glimpse of a woman that looks startlingly like Bakugou. They meet eyes for a split second before he tears them away to focus on the task at hand.

Houndoom comes to a halt before the ambulance, crouching down. Medics are rushing them. One tries to take Izuku but the boy screams out. “NO!” Shouta pulls away, taking Izuku’s face in one hand and pushing their foreheads together so the greenette can see his eyes. “Izuku, I need you to listen closely to me,” he speaks hurriedly before the boy delves into another panic attack. “Everything is okay. You believed me before so believe me now. Everything is okay. We are taking you to the hospital. I will be there too. For now, stay with the medics. Nemuri will go with you. Do you understand? What is it?”

Izuku takes a stuttering breath. “I- it’s okay…” Shouta nods. He hates using that but it is necessary at the moment. “Good. I will see you soon.”

Not counting the commute time, it is a fast operation. Izuku is taken away by one ambulance to get clean air with a gas mask. Nemuri sits in with him. Shouta is taken in another where he also is fed clean air as they do first aid treatment on his back on the way where they will have to do more work on it when they get back to Lumiose City. The Houndoom is being held at the school, unsure of what to do with it. It refuses to go back to Mr. Midoriya. Shouta suspects it will either become property of the school, released into the wild, or Izuku and it will be given the choice to become partners and for Izuku to catch it. Mr. Midoriya is being taken to the jail there after having been put unconscious by Nemuri’s quirk. Mrs. Midoriya is also supposed to be arrested but for the time being she will be in a guarded hotel with Inha because they don’t want to separate the little girl from her mother up until the court date to decide what happens to the two children.

When they reach the hospital things begin to settle in and calm down. He is forced to stay calm and wait for them to finish treating his back which takes about thirty minutes after arriving and then getting it wrapped up. Only then is Shouta released to go see Izuku only… he isn’t?

“He’s in surgery?” Shouta asks, flabbergasted. He and the other heroes are outside of the hospital. A doctor who came outside to talk with him nodded. “This may not be what you want to hear at the time but it would seem Midoriya has been giving himself stitches using simple thread to sew himself up and stapling them with office staples.” Shouta paled. “We removed one that seemed to be recent so it was not much of a deal. We put in the correct stitches for that one already.”

Shouta nods. “Okay, so why does he need surgery right now of all times? We literally just got here.” The doctor nods. “I understand that but the thing is, one of these ‘stitches’ he gave himself he never removed. In his right side there is a string that has been there so long his skin and flesh actually had begun growing over it. It has probably been causing him a lot of pain for a long time as well and it is incredibly infected. We had no choice as medical professionals to take it out before the infection spreads to his bloodstream which we are lucky it hasn’t already at this point. In order to do that we had to put him under for surgery because the string and the staples are so deeply embedded into him.”

Shouta sighs, running a hand through his hair. He felt sick.  _ After everything that has happened… _ “As if he didn’t have enough issues to deal with. Thank you, doctor. Will you come find me when he is out? I should be in the waiting room.” “Yes, Sir.”

Shouta turns to Nemuri and Hizashi as the doctor leaves. Nedzu sits perched on the blonde's shoulder. “Eraserhead, regarding Midoriya’s living situation for the time being,” the principal starts, “we have gotten you approved to house him up until the court date if that is alright with you.”

Shouta nods. “Of course. When is the court date?”

Nedzu hums. “It is too early to know but I am sure that with my influence we can get the closest date available. I would say prepare for it within the next coming days.” Nemuri lifts an eyebrow. “Isn’t that a bit soon.” Nedzu nods. “It is but considering we have children that need to be housed, courts usually try to deal with those quickly so it is easier for the kids. These sorts of circumstances are not easy on such young minds. That being said,” he turns back to Shouta, “in these few days you need to work on getting a fully recorded testimony from Midoriya for the court to review beforehand.” Shouta nods. “I’ll do what I can but can I request the audience? I don’t think Izuku would be comfortable with just random strangers.” Nedzu nods. “That can be arranged. Just tell me as soon as possible for the date. Is there anything you need before we go?”

Shouta looks over at the hospital. “Until the court date, would it be possible for me and Izuku to take off without it negatively affecting us?”

Nedzu nods. “Of course. You know how important it is to UA to take care of our students and faculty. Especially in the hero field, minds are easily damaged in such a harsh field of work.” Shouta nods. “Thank you. On Monday, however, I would like to come in and speak with my students about them sitting in for the court date. It would be good experience for them to see how those work and I think it will do them well to know what Izuku acts the way he does. That and I feel he’d be more comfortable as he knows them.”

Nedzu nods. “I will inform them of the seriousness of the matter beforehand.” “Thank you, Nedzu.” The mammal nods, climbing down from his perch on Hizashi. “Well then, I shall be taking my leave.”

Shouta blinks. “Ah, and,” he turns to all of the gathered heroes and bows deeply, wincing as the wound on his back is stretched, “thank you all for coming and helping with this.”

“Eraserhead, lift your head,” Cementoss orders. Shouta does. The stone man and the others smile. “You do not need to thank us. We would have done it anyway. Midoriya has made a special place in all of our hearts whether he knows it or not. Please do give him our regards when he wakes up.” Shouta nods. “I will. Thank you again.” He watches them leave with a heavy heart. Shouta turns his raven eyes to the night sky. Nemuri and Hizashi each place a hand on his shoulder. He takes a waving breath.

“Why?” Shouta asks. “We got him out but why does it still feel like we failed?”

Hizashi shook his head. “Do not blame yourself, Shouta. It was Mr. Midoriya’s fault and his alone. All that matters now is that we finish this once and for all. At court we will lay out all of the evidence and if we can get Mi- Izuku to give his testimony there in person with Tsukauchi on our side checking for lie, there is no way Izuku will be forced to go back there.”

Nemuri nods. “And it happened so fast. You’ve been working with Izuku well over two years now and this operation, while we’ve had it planned for a while, happened in one night. Give it time to sink in, alright?”

Shouta lowers his head. “I am going to go wait in the waiting room.”

“Do you want us to join you?”

“Only if you want.”

And they did. They followed Shouta in and sat with him, Nemuri letting him rest his eyes on her shoulder. His back hurt like hell but he refused to take the prescribed pain medication they gave him because it had sleeping effects and he wanted to be there for Izuku when he woke up. Soon enough, they were called in. He knocked on the door first. “Izuku? It’s Shouta. I’m coming in now, okay?” There was no reply but the doctor said he was awake. Shouta swallowed thickly and pushed open the door. Izuku was sitting on the bed, propped up in many pillows. He stared blankly at the ceiling. Chip, who was curled up on his lap, lifted his head and looked towards them. Nemuri patted Shouta’s back. He nods and walks in. They pull over a few chairs to the side of the bed. “Izuku?” Shouta reaches forward and gently takes the boy’s hand between his own. “Hey, kid, how are you feeling?” Izuku takes a very thin, very shaky breath.

“ **Shouta…?** ” Tears fill those foggy, viridian eyes. “ **How much am I worth to you?** ”

Shouta’s mouth fell dry. “A thousand?” the boy continues. “Two? Five hundred? Am I worth anything?” “Izuku-” “It was all a lie…” The tears begin to fall. “Everything! I- I wasn’t protecting anyone. H- he was just u- using me.” Izuku chuckled dryly. “I- I guess I already knew it, though. I’m not worth anything, huh? Ever heard of those sex dolls? Th- that’s all I am now! Is that… Is that really all I’m worth…?”

Shouta stood up and sat on the edge of the bed. Despite the aching pain in his back, he leaned over and took Izuku into his arms, being conscious of the boy’s new stitches. He cupped the back of the greenette’s head and pulled him to his shoulder.Chip moved to curl up in Shouta’s lap now.

“You,” he said softly but confidently, “are worth so much more than that. You too, Chip. More than all of the stars in the sky. I would dive to the bottom of the deepest sea, travel across the farthest ocean, and fight the largest army for you. That is how much you mean to me. There is no price I could put on you because you are priceless. You are my  _ son _ and that is what matters to me.”

Izuku’s breath hitched. His hands came up and gripped the back of Shouta’s shirt. “Wh- why…?” he choked out. “I- I hurt you… I y- yelled at you.” Shouta nods. “Yes, you did. It hurt so, so much when you said that but it hurt me more to know why you were doing that. If you still feel bad then promise me this, that you will work with me to fix this. I still want you as my son if you will still have me as your father.” Izuku sobbed loudly into his shoulder. Chip, too, burying his face into Shouta’s jumpsuit. “I’m sorry!” he cried. “I’m sorry!” Shouta ran his fingers through Izuku’s hair as the boy poured out his heart. Izuku didn’t hear them and he didn’t see them but tears were falling from Shouta’s eyes too. 

Eventually, Izuku passed out. Nemuri called in the doctor and they got the okay to go home with instructions on how to treat Izuku’s wounds.

Hizashi had to carry the sleeping boy as Shouta was practically writhing in pain by now. On the way home he was forced to take his pain medicine and by the time they arrived at his house he was nodding off.

“You guys can stay * **yaaawn** * over if you want…” Shouta murmurs. He unlocks the door and opens it. The house he got was near the outskirts of Lumiose City. It opened into the living room that held a black velvet couch, a television, a coffee table, and a deep brown love seat to the left and a standing lamp in the corner. Moving past that is the dining room and to the left of that is the kitchen. Past the dining room was a second room in which Shouta made his office. Past that is the garage. If you take a left in the living room there is a hallway. The first two doors on the left are two bedrooms, one for Izuku, and one for the pets. The first door on the right was a laundry room and a bit further down was the guest bathroom. At the end of that hallway Shouta’s room with a bathroom connected to it. 

It was quite a bit larger than his old apartment and took a bit more upkeep but he wanted Izuku to have a sense of a real home. After seeing what he assumes is where Izuku has been living in for many, many years, a cold, dark basement, that idea was even more prominent in his mind. 

Izuku’s eyes fluttered open upon entering the house. Shouta blinked lazily. He held out his arms. “Give ‘im hereee.” Hizashi raised an eyebrow but passed the dazed boy to him. Shouta almost stumbled. Dang he was tired. He stumbled down the hall, Nemuri and Hizashi following close behind to make sure he didn’t fall. “Shouta?” Izuku reached up and felt his scarf to make sure it was him. Shouta hums. “That’s ‘Dad’ to you, young man.” He kicked open his bedroom door and sat the boy on it. “Um…”

“Sleep for now,” Shouta instructed, yawning again. Izuku pulls on the edges of his hospital gown. It was all he had at the moment. Shouta turns to Hizashi. “Can you get my bathrobe from my bathroom?” “Of course.” Hizashi disappeared and reappeared with a navy blue bathrobe. Shouta takes it and drapes it around Izuku’s shoulders. He kneels by the boy. “We will protect you now so don’t worry about anything. Just sleep.” Tired viridian glanced up at him. Shouta pulls back the blankets and gently pushes Izuku down. He climbed in next to the boy.

“Alright, you two.” Nemuri held the door open. “Me and Hizashi will be here if you need us. Just get some rest.” Shouta yawned and waved them off. “Thanks…” They turned off the lights and closed the door. Shouta laid down, eyes dropping. Chip curled up next to him.

* **sniff** *

His eyes fluttered open. “Come here,” Shouta held open his arms. Izuku hesitated before curling closer. Shouta wrapped his arms around his son. “It’s okay now. It’s okay.” He pulled Izuku tighter. “It’s okay…”

____________________________

It’s dark but everything is always dark for him. It’s quiet. He’s scared. He’s tired. His heart hurts. His legs and lower back hurt. His body feels like it isn’t his own. He feels disgusting. Everything just feels so off.

But the arms around him make him feel warm. He hears the quiet snores of the man who gained his trust and proved his trustworthiness. Chip poked his head up from between the two of them. “Vee?” Izuku hummed. He snuggles closer, reaching out and lightly grabbing Shouta’s jumpsuit.

_ It’s okay… Shouta’s okay… Izuku’s okay… Everything is… okay… _

He closes his eyes and falls asleep.

____________________________

After the initial day, Izuku was quieter. Things were taking time to settle in and Shouta knew that the boy was holding back until after the court date. He didn’t want to get his hopes up in case something goes wrong. That was okay. Shouta would respect the boundaries Izuku has set up. He didn’t want to get his hopes up either. Mr. Midoriya is a professional at this. He’s spent years creating a web of believable lies. As much as Shout hates it, it would not surprise him is Mr. Midoriya had something up his sleeve.

Over the weekend, Shouta, Hizashi, and Nemuri worked together to get a working testimony out of the boy. Izuku would spend a lot of time in Shouta’s bedroom, just sitting and waiting. It was a bit disconcerting. They learned a  _ lot _ about the boy in that short period of time which only served to make them more and more angry. He seemed to be walking on eggshells around them. That confident gate he had was completely shattered. Izuku was pliant, overly willing to comply with anything they said so they, in turn, were on eggshells making sure to request anything that would force the boy to do anything they think he wouldn’t like.

Shouta wants Izuku to be comfortable here. He doesn’t want Izuku and Chip to just be dolls like they have been trained. He needs them to understand that they are living, breathing things with a will.

On Monday, he regretfully had to go to school to talk to his class. Shouta would be back soon but he still didn’t want to leave Izuku alone. Luckily, he didn’t have to.

“Go, Shouta, I will take care of Izuku,” Mom pushed him out of the door. She had come to help out in regards to the situation. Shouta looks past her at Izuku who came out of the bedroom so he could say goodbye. Izuku and Chip weren’t really looking at him, more looking past him. The first thing Shouta plans to do if he gets the kid is to fix their eyes. He is pretty sure they are either 100% blind now or pretty close. He thinks they still have a little sight but it is obvious that they can’t see much. He’s tried to give them books to read but it takes them a good thirty minutes to flip even one page. Nevertheless, Shouta waves. “Izuku, Chip, I’ll be back, alright? Absol, take care of them.” “Absol!” He is leaving Absol with them just in case. “Call me if you need anything.” He has his phone back now and has returned Hizashi’s phone too.

“Shouta, go.” Mom pushes him out. The door closes behind him. Shouta sighs. “Breon…” So does Umbreon. “It will be fine. We should only be an hour or so.”

The two hop in the car and make their way to UA Trainer’s Academy. The court date is in two days. Today he plans to contact everyone he wants to be in the gallery, aka, the civilians that sit in on court cases as basic witnesses. Before going to his class, he goes to the teacher’s lounge and sits at his desk. He opens the desk computer. First things first, he has a few that he wants to come in particular. Shouta really does not want just a bunch of civilians because if his hunch is correct, it will delve into screaming, yelling, and maybe even fighting. It won’t be a pretty day for anyone. So he emails Mrs. Williams, Serena’s mother. He got her contact information from Hitoshi. He requests if Serena can take off a day or two from school for this. He emails Hope from the Vaniville Pokemon Center too. Nemuri walks up to his desk. “Are you ready? Homeroom is starting.” Shouta signs out of his computer and stands. “Yeah.” He followers her to his room. She can’t come in at the time as she has a homeroom of her own but she gives him a kiss on the cheek before leaving. Shouta and Umbreon walk in.

“Get to your seats,” he immediately says. Everyone is already sitting, deathly serious. Principal Nedzu had contacted all of the parents of the students in regards to this so they understood the seriousness of the situation.

“First off,” Shouta starts, “welcome back from your internships. I trust you all gained some good experience. Asui, congratulations on your Froakie evolving into Frogadier this week.” She nods. “Thank you, Sensei, ribbit.” “Iida, Uraraka, Todoroki, you three, I am glad that you are okay but I want a report on top of the report you are all being assigned about your internships but this one will be about remorse and understanding. I will give you the details later. Iida,” he turns to the blue-haired boy specifically, “you and me will be having a private conversation sometime around next week. This week I am stacked on time. On that note, I am sure you all heard about what happened and why I am even here today in the first place.”

There are a few murmurs and nods. Shouta continues. 

“On Wednesday of last week, Midoriya was attacked during the internships,” he starts. “Villains claiming his father had sold him to them were there to retrieve him. The only thing is, they were correct.” A few gasped. “Midoriya was, in fact, sold to villains but they did not succeed in kidnapping him and Midoriya was sent home the next day. That night I got a call from him. For a little bit of background, I have known Midoriya for over two years now and have suspected his home life to not be well but I lacked evidence. Turns out, our hunches were correct. Since he was four years old, Midoriya has been abused behind closed doors.” Everyone paled. “This Wednesday is the court date. A whole lot will be unpacked in this court case. Some disturbing things will be mentioned. It will be loud, frightening, and a hard day for everyone involved. That being said, because the day is going to be so mentally and emotionally taxing we have determined that it would be better for Midoriya if the people in the gallery are those he is familiar with.”

Iida raises his hand. “Sensei, what do you mean by ‘gallery.’”

Shouta nods. “Good question. In the back of every courtroom is a group of people. It is usually just random civilians because they need witnesses however if you have people in mind they can fill that role. Many are supporters of those participating. This is why I have turned to you all. Midoriya does not have much. He has been highly alienated in his town because of his elementless status. As far as we know, you are the closest he has. He has even been alienated from his family. We are requesting your help in this, if only to act as support. You can’t speak during the case at all but we’d rather have familiar faces there. We understand that this will be mentally taing on all of you as well so it is not mandatory but we would like your response by tomorrow. Aside from acting as support for Midoriya, this would also be a good experience for you to see how these cases go. All of you in your careers as professional heroes will have to do these sort of things more often than you would think. You would be standing in the place of me during those times giving your case on why you arrested someone and so on, so forth. I will be passing out a form. If you want to come, please fill it out and give it to Present Mic tomorrow. Of course, your parents or guardians will have to accompany you so do get their permission. Present mic will deliver them to me.”

Kaminari raises his hand. “Where will you be, Sensei?”

“I am taking a few days of leave,” Shouta responds. “I will be frank with you, Midoriya’s mental state is currently in shambles. He is staying with me for the time being and we are hoping that I will get permanent guardianship over him. If you attend the case you will understand better but for a bit I will need to take time to quite literally put him back together. During this time, Midnight and Present Mic will be taking turns subbing for your homeroom. I apologize for this and hope you will all be lenient and understanding with us during this time.”

Mina raised her hand. “Sensei, please don’t apologize. I think it’d be pretty stupid of us to get angry at you for something like this.”

“Yeah!” Kirishima yelled. “I’m more angry that my man Midoriya had to go through all of that!” There was a chorus of agreements. Shouta offered them a rare smirk. “Thank you all. I will be passing around the papers now.” And he did. Before turning to leave, Shouta caught Bakugou’s eyes. Those crimson orbs were blown wide in shock. Of course. He’s known Izuku his whole life. The fact that Bakugou is this shocked to hear about the abuse, even though the whole town of Vaniville knew about the burning of the Midoriya house, just goes to show just how meticulous Mr. Midoriya was in hiding of what was truly happening.

Shouta turns and leaves. 

When he arrives back at home, no one is there. For a split second his heart stops.  _ Did the villains come for him again?! _ Then there is a quiet murmuring from the backyard. He had gotten as close to the edge of the city as possible so they could have a small backyard with a fence. Shouta tiptoes through the house and peers out of the glass window that is connected to his office. Mom is sitting in the grass. Izuku is laying in it, his head on her lap as she runs her fingers through his hair. Beside her Absol lays, eyes closed. Chip lays curled up on the Absol’s back. Mom’s Litwik is on the back porch, probably avoiding getting too close because of Izuku’s fear of fire. Shouta opens the door and the sounds of a familiar tune hit his ears.

It was a song Mom used to sing to him when he was sad. When Dad died and when Shirakumo was killed she did this exact thing. Shouta is more surprised that she got Izuku outside than anything. He lets Umbreon and Seviper out to roam before silently making his way over and sitting beside her. Mom shoots him a sad smile but does not stop singing. He glances down at Izuku.

The boy just stares blankly up at the sky. Every once in a while he’d blink ever so slowly. They bought him a few pairs of clothes for the days before the court date but even now he dons Shouta’s navy blue bathrobe like some sort of security blanket. Shouta reaches over and waves his hand over Izuku’s face. Nothing. He moves his hand a bit closer and waves again. Green eyes blink. They shift over to him. Shouta knows he must look so distorted in Izuku’s eyes. He opts for moving his hand down and taking Izuku’s in his own, rubbing the back of it with his thumb in soft circles. Izuku turns back to look at the sky and the song continues.

_ It’s going to be a long week… _

____________________________

**Wednesday, The Courthouse**

____________________________

Most of Class 1-A came. The only ones who did not show up were Ojiro and Hagakure because they had complications with the timing. Most brought either their mom or dad or both. The Bakugous sat at the front. Serena and her parents came as well. The gallery was split down the middle by a pathway. One end of the path had double doors. At the other end was a box for the one in chains to stand. In front of the gallery on either side was a small wooden railing where they could not pass. In front of that the path in the middle split ways to a box on the left and a box on the right. There was a nice sized clearing before a raised platform with the judges box on top.

The judge was a woman with short, brown hair in a bob: Judge Nakamura. She donned a black judges cloak. On either side of the judges box were a couple of rough-looking guards. They were in first. Then the gallery walked in. There were still a few civilians but most of it consisted of the members of Class 1-A and their family. One could tell how tense they were. The seriousness of the situation rested heavily on their consciousness. They all filed in to either side of the gallery. The double doors at the end of the path opened. 

A man in a suit with short, black hair walked out. Detective Tsukauchi Naomasa, a well known, highly trusted, and highly respected detective in both the hero field and the police force. His quirk: Lie Detector. Beside him trods his pokemon, Furfrou, freshly groomed and fur slicked back. He took a place in the box beside the judges box.

Again the doors opened. Out stepped Aizawa Shouta, Professional Hero: Eraserhead, face freshly shaven, hair pulled up, and donning a black and white suit. Beside him was Kayama Nemuri, Professional Hero: Midnight, in a purple suit, regular glasses, and her hair also tied back. Beside her was Yamada Hizashi, Professional Hero: Present Mic, in the same. Behind them walked each of their main pokemon: Liepard, Umbreon, and Exploud. A display of power. In Yamada’s arms sat Principal Nedzu, the principal of the prestigious hero school: UA Trainer’s Academy.

In the middle of all of them walked a green-haired boy who looked to be thirteen years old but in reality is fifteen. Name: Midoriya Izuku. He was dressed in a suit and tie as well and beside him walked a three-legged Eevee. Behind them all walked a tall, looming Houndoom. Altogether, the group took a left at the middle box and took seats in the box left of the clearing.

The doors opened. A petite woman with straight, long green hair and viridian eyes exited: Midoriya Inko. Walking beside her was an eight year old little girl with black curly hair and black eyes and freckles, holding Mrs. Midoriya’s hand: Midoriya Inha. Beside the girl trotted a Growlithe and beside the woman floated a Skiploom. They were escorted to the box right of the clearing by guards.

And then finally the doors opened one last time and in walked a man dressed in a prisoners orange jumpsuit, his hands chained in front of him with quirk-canceling cuffs. He was tall with curly black hair and black eyes. His presence sent shivers down the spines of everyone in the room. On either side of him walked guards that escorted him to the middle box to face the judge, the guards lining up behind him.

Judge Nakamura stood, everyone else in the room following suit. She lifted her gavel and brought it down three times: * **BAM** * * **BAM** * * **BAM** * “Criminal Justice Court is now in session.” The double doors were locked and everyone sat down. A guard from the front of the room walked up to Mrs. Midoriya’s box and held up a Bible. She put her right hand on the Bible and raised her left hand and gave the oath. The guard moved to Mr. Midoriya. He, too, gave the oath. The guard moved to Midoriya. He gave the oath as well and the guard moved back to the front of the room. “Make a note, this is the case in regards to the abuse Midoriya Hisashi and Midoriya Inko subjected their son, Midoriya Izuku, for eleven years. Midoriya Izuku, would you please give your testimony?”

The green-haired boy looked up from where he was staring at his hands. He looked so, so tired. Izuku stood up and took a few steps forward to the edge of the box. “U- um…” He glances towards Mr. Midoriya and looks back down. Judge Nakamura hums. “He is unable to do anything at this moment. Please feel free to speak.” It is obvious that she has dealt with these sorts of cases before. Izuku nods shakily but doesn’t look up. “Sh- Shouta said I should tell everything?” “As much as you can.” Izuku nods again. “U- Um… so… Uh, I was diagnosed as elementless at four years old a- and,” he began to shake a bit, “M- Mr. Midoriya began to ignore me, I guess, but he would starve me and-” He froze.

“Midoriya?”

Aizawa stands and walks up behind the boy, placing his hand on the younger’s shoulder. “Mrs. Midoriya,” he says. “He has trouble calling them by parental names. Recounting this part reminds him of when he considered them his parents. Please give him time.” Judge Nakamura nods. “I understand. Please continue when you are ready, Midoriya.” The greenette takes a shaky breath. Aizawa does not remove the contact on his shoulder. “H- he wouldn’t feed… us… After I b- bonded with Ch- Um, Eevee, he turned abusive-”

“I’m sorry, may I object?” Mrs. Midoriya raised a hand, cutting off Midoriya. “He gave an oath not to lie and yet Akatani is still lying.”

Everyone looks at her confused. “Who is Akatani, Mrs. Midoriya?” Judge Nakamura asks. Inha raises her hand and points across the room at Izuku. “Him?” she states as though it is obvious. Izuku stiffens. She waves happily when he looks up at her. She obviously does not understand what is happening. Judge Nakamura turns to Mrs. Midoriya. “Can you explain what you mean?” She raises an eyebrow. “Are you serious? What are we here for?” She looks across the room at Izuku. “Akatani, why are you doing this? Have we ever wronged you?” Izuku’s eyes widened. “Wh- what?”

Judge Nakamura turns to Izuku. “Please continue your testimony.” The boy shakes his head, trying to clear it as though he is confused. “I- She- Mr. Midoriya would take me to the basement to ‘train’ m- me-”

“ _ Tutoring _ , your honor,” Mrs. Midoriya cuts in again. “We have been taking care of Akatani since he was six, letting him live in the basement of our home while Hisashi tutors him. He never had parents.” Izuku grits his teeth. Judge Nakamura sighs. “Can someone please explain who Akatani is?”

“It’s me…” Izuku whispers. “Sh- she isn’t wrong…” Aizawa’s hand grips his shoulder tighter. “Please explain,” Judge Nakamura presses. The greenette nods. “He… When M- Mr. Midoriya got Mrs. Midoriya p- pregnant with Inha, h- he moved me down to the basement where he would continue to tr- train me d-”

“Tuto-”

“MRS. MIDORIYA,” Judge Nakamura cuts in, “if you interrupt one more time you will be removed from the court.” Mrs. Midoriya closes her mouth and the judge gestures for Izuku to continue. Aizawa nudges him when he doesn’t see it. Izuku nods. “Tr- training was basically burning and kicking a- and punching and th- throwing us against walls.” “Us?” “M- me and Eevee. S- sometimes Smokey,” he gestures to the Houndoom behind them, “would join in b- but only because Mr. Midoriya hurt h- him too… He tried t- to protect us m- most of the time but w- we often got, erm, cut open a lot… H- he couldn’t help it though!” he shouts frantically. Judge Nakamura nods. “Understood. Please continue.” Izuku nods. “I- I don’t know when it started b- but Mr. Midoriya, Mrs. Midoriya, and Inha began to refer to me by Mikumo. Akatani Mikumo, that is. Um…” he glances up at the confused little girl, “I don’t think anyone ever told her that I existed.”

The room went deathly silent. Inha pulled on Mrs. Midoriya’s hand. “Mom, what is Akatani saying? I don’t understand.” The green-haired woman clutched her head. “It’s nothing, sweetie.” She looks up sharply. “Your honor, Akatani is confused. Hisashi would never do any of that! Sure, he has been a bit rough before but-”

“Shall we ask the man himself?” Judge Nakamura cuts in. “Midoriya Hisashi, can you confirm the words of Midoriya?” Everyone turns to the previously silent man. He sighs. “Yes, that is all true.”

“Hisashi!” Mrs. Midoriya cries out. She whips her head to the judge. “Your honor, that isn’t true!” She looks over at Izuku. “Akatani, stop this nonsense now! How can you make up such lies after all that we have done for you?!”

Izuku’s head shot up. “A- are you kidding me?! D- do you seriously think I would make this all up?! It’s  _ you _ that did this! You and Mr. Midoriya!” The air around him got hotter. “You  _ left me _ ! I tried so hard to protect you and you  _ forgot _ me!”

Mrs. Midoriya stumbled back, clutching her head. “Shut up! I don’t understand!” Anger flares in her eyes. She whips her head back up to the judge. “He’s lying your honor! We never did anything to him! I don’t know why you continue to call him Midoriya. That boy is not my son!” Izuku stumbles back. She glares at him. “How dare you do this! We took care of you! Fed and clothed you!” His head snaps up. “You starved me! The only clothes I got were hand-me-downs from a friend! I survived off of protein bars you made me steal before you abandoned me!”

“Shut up!” She swirls around to her husband. “Tell them, Hisashi!”

…

“Hisashi!” When he doesn’t respond, Mrs. Midoriya turns back to Judge Nakamura. “There must be some kind of mistake!” She looks over at Izuku. “Stop lying, Akatani! What did we do?”

“ARE YOU JOKING?!” Izuku screeched. Tears poured from his eyes. “I spent  _ years _ in that basement to protect you! You and Inha and Serena and Hitoshi and Nurse Hope and everyone and  _ this _ is what I get?! And then he sells me as if all of my efforts meant nothing?! What did you do?!”

“ **Akatani.** ” Mr. Midoriya’s voice puts a halt to the both of them. Izuku freezes, eyes wide. His body shakes, arm twitching by his side. He looks down, a smile splitting his face. “I- I’m sorry… I was wrong… It’s okay… It’s okay…” Judge Nakamura narrows her eyes. “Mr. Midoriya, please refrain from speaking again without a notion to. You best watch what you say. To blatantly threaten your son in front of us-”

“I- I’m not their son…” Izuku whispers but it is loud enough for everyone to hear. He stumbles back, Aizawa catching him by the shoulder. Izuku’s hands curl in his hair. “I- I’m not Midoriya… Izuku is okay… Izuku is okay… Izuku is okay…” The judge stops, obviously perplexed by Izuku’s response. Aizawa motions for her to continue. “This is simply a coping method Midori-”

“I’M NOT!” Izuku screeches. “I- I was wrong! I’m Izuku! I’m different! Izuku is okay!” 

“Eraserhead,” Judge Nakamura addresses the man, “should we postpone this?” He shakes his head. “I am afraid it won’t get any better until after the ruling. I did try to use his last name for professional purposes but I will have to make a request for you to call him by Izuku for the duration of this.” 

“Then call him Mikumo!” Mrs. Midoriya shouts. “He’s right! He isn’t my son!” Izuku’s head shoots up. He stumbles towards the front of the box, placing his hand on the edge of it. His left hand grips at his shirt. “Why did you leave?! What did I do wrong?!”

“Shut up!” Mrs. Midoriya yells. “What you are doing now is wrong! We haven’t done anything to you!”

“Why can’t you see me?!” Izuku cries. “Look at me! LOOK AT ME!!!”

“I am! Hisashi, tell them!” Mrs Midoriya turns to him again. The raven-haired man scowls. “Oh, I’m sorry my whore wife messed around with other men and gave birth to that disgrace.” Mrs. Midoriya’s face fell. “Wh- Hisashi! How many times have I told you that I never did that?! I would never cheat on you!” Mr. Midoriya, still facing her, jabs a finger at Izuku. “Then tell me how that mutt came to breathe?!” Izuku cries out.

“That is not my son!” Mrs. Midoriya yells. “He’s not yours either! You told me this! It’s better, right? It’s better if you forget, right?! RIGHT?!”

A man enters the courtroom from one of the back doors of the courtroom with a file. Everyone is silent as he crosses the room and hands the file to Judge Nakamura before leaving. His sudden cut in cut a deep divot in the conversation, well, fight. Everyone was tense, waiting to see what it was. Judge Nakamura flipped through the file before letting out a long sigh.

“I was afraid of this,” she stated. “I have heard a vocal recording of Mi- Izuku’s testimony beforehand as well as one from Mr and Mrs. Midoriya. Each story was so different it was hard to put it together.” She looks over at the group of heroes and Izuku.

“ **Have you by chance heard of gaslighting?** ”

Those who knew the term stiffened. Principal Nedzu cleared his throat. “Most heroes are aware of it. If I am not mistaken, isn’t it a form of manipulation?” Judge Nakamura nods. “Correct. More specifically, it is typically a form of abuse within relationships where one party abuses the mind of their partner to an unstable state and uses that to manipulate them and question themselves. I’ve only seen one case this bad before this to where the partner is so badly manipulated and tortured they have forgotten a complete part of themselves. It causes a lack in sanity and to protect themselves from any more abuse and pain they are forced into the mindset the gaslighter has imposed on them. This is one of the worst cases of it I have seen for the husband to twist the wife’s mind so much as to forget her child but I must say, I have never seen the gaslighter gaslight his entire family  _ and himself _ all in one go.”

Mrs. Midoriya’s fists turn white. “Judge Nakamura… I don’t understand. Hisashi wouldn’t do this. Just what was in that file to make you suggest this?”

The judge looks over at the hero group. “I am sure you all know what this is as many of you have attended court cases on multiple occasions. If you feel this will harm the boy to hear this, you may take him out of the courtroom for this.” Aizawa walked up and put a hand on Izuku’s shoulder. “A gaslighting victim needs to hear the truth for them to get better, your honor.” Judge Nakamura sighed. She looked down at the file. “This is a DNA test, to put it in simple terms,” she announced to the room. “We have taken DNA samples from all involved parties: Mr and Mrs. Midoriya, Midoriya Inha, and Izuku. We had them sent to a lab to get them tested to see the correlation between them and to search for any familiar bonds.” Mr and Mrs. Midoriya stiffened. Victory lit in both of their eyes. In Mr. Midoriya’s he felt victorious, about to prove that Izuku wasn’t related to him and that his wife cheated. Mrs. Midoriya felt victorious thinking that she would prove her innocence to her husband here and prove that it was ‘Akatani’ who was lying. Izuku had gone stock still. Judge Nakamura’s mouth opened and she read aloud.

“ **When it comes to Midoriya Izuku, Midoriya Hisashi and Midoriya Inko, you two are his biological parents.** ”

* **thud** * Mr. Midoriya fell to his knees, eyes blown wide.

* **SLAM** * Mrs. Midoriya slammed her hands on the edge of her box. “LIES! LIES! LIES!!!”

Izuku stumbled back. “ **No… NONONONONONONONONONONONONO!!!!!** ”

He fell to the ground, body jerking. The guards immediately rushed him. “Stay back!” Aizawa threw his arm out. “If you want proof of gaslighting and abuse this is it! The damage to his mental state and brain upon many concussions causes seizures when his emotions run high!” Izuku cried out, back arching. “I’m different! Izuku is okay! Izuku is okay!”

In the right box Mrs. Midoriya was being restrained by guards. “Hisashi! Tell them! This is a lie! A lie! He’s perfect! Hisashi wouldn’t do this! Stop!” Judge Nakamura ordered for Midoriya Inha to be taken out, the little girl crying in fear in shock by the reactions to something she didn’t understand. “Hisashi!”

In the middle box, Midoriya Hisashi stared blankly at the ceiling. “My… son? No way… I wouldn’t do that to my own son…” “DAD!” His eyes flit to Inha as she is taken away, crying for him. “I’m sorry… Would I do that to you too? I can’t be around her either… He was really my son? No way…”

The gallery stared on in shock at the scene before them. In one corner was a seizing boy, to most of them their classmate. In the other was a screaming, thrashing woman, the boy’s biological mother who no longer recognized him. In the middle was a shell shocked man on his knees, the boy’s biological father who was so sure that he wasn’t the father and resorted to abusing him and the mother as a result of suspected cheating. Down the path was an eight year old girl, the sister of the boy who didn’t even know existed, only existing as someone who was created in a lie, and she was dragged into this without even knowing what was going on and had her world torn apart. The courtroom was in shambles but one thing was clear:

_ Midoriya Hisashi gaslit everyone in his family including himself. _

* **BAM** * * **BAM** * * **BAM** * Judge Nakamura slammed her gavel on the podium. “Order! Mrs. Midoriya, please settle. Eraserhead, is Izuku alright?” The green-haired woman shut up but still stood tauntly held back by guards. Aizawa lifted his head from watching Izuku who was still slightly jerking in his arms, completely disoriented. “He’s fine. Continue. We need to end this.” Judge Nakamura nodded and turned to Mr. Midoriya. “Midoriya Hisashi, the evidence is against you so I suggest you answer these questions truthfully. Do not forget we have Detective Tsukauchi to check you for lies via his quirk. Did you abuse Midoriya Izuku?”

…

…

…

“Hisashi…?” Mrs. Midoriya’s voice broke. The raven haired man looked up, tears falling down his face. “ **Y** \-  **yes.** ” Detective Tsukauchi nodded. “Truth.” Mrs. Midoriya let out a strangled gasp, falling back, a guard catching her.

“Did you starve him, lock him in a basement, and sell him to villains?”

“ **Yes** .” “Truth.”

“Based on a vocal recording of Izuku’s testimony, did you rape him?”

“ **Yes...** ” “Truth.” “HISASHI!” Mrs. Midoriya cried out. Izuku screamed from the side.

“Did you abuse Midoriya Inko?”

“ **Yes...** ” “Truth.”

“Did you alienate your son, daughter, and wife to the point where Midoriya Inha did not even recognize Izuku has her brother?”

“ **Yes…** ” “Truth.”

“Did you force your Houndoom to participate in abusing your family?”

Mr. Midoriya flinched at the word ‘family.’ “ **Y- yes…** ” “Truth.”

“Did you burn down your house as well?”

“ **Yes…** ” “Truth.”

“Midoriya Hisashi,” Judge Nakamura’s voice was laced with anger, “do you admit to gaslighting yourself, your wife, your son, and your daughter?”

…

…

…

“ **I do…** ”

“Izuku!” All heads whipped to the side. The greenette thrashed on the ground, water bubbling from his mouth. The Eevee, turned Vaporeon, thrashed on the ground. Aizawa lifted his head. “Judge Nakamura!” She stood sharply and threw her arm out. “Get the boy and Eevee out of here! It is unsafe for him to be around the Midoriya’s any longer! Someone call a paramedic!” Aizawa scooped up Izuku into his arms. Yamada scooped up the Vaporeon. The two rushed down the path between the two sides of the gallery, the double doors held open for them by a couple of guards. The Class of 1-A watched as their classmate was taken out of the room.

Judge Nakamura. “We will adjourn to calm down before the final ruling and to decide what that shall be. Guards, please take Mr and Mrs. Midoriya out. Make sure Midoriya Inha is well taken care of.” She raises her gavel. “We will reconvene back in thirty minutes.” She brought it down. * **BAM** *

Each of the Midoriya’s were taken to separate rooms in the courthouse. The gallery was permitted to walk around and talk but no one knew what to say. Not even the random civilians present could gossip about what just happened before their eyes. The Class 1-A students were comforting each other in their own right, some taking the intermission to break down themselves after hearing all of the terrible things that had happened to their classmate and seeing for themselves just how broken this family truly was. Others were thanking the higher power for the blessing of having a good life, even Uraraka. Though her family is poor, they at least have each other. Serena was crying into her mother’s arms. Hitoshi was holding Espurr close to his chest, his father rubbing his back. Ash, Kirishima, Kaminari, and Ashido were trying to lighten the mood.

The Bakugous were… silent. Stunned into silence.

Judge Nakamura entered the courtroom a few minutes before they began again, her presence telling the gallery to get it together. They are supposed to be impartial as to not aggravate anything. Just viewers. They could cry later. Soon the double doors opened and in walked the hero team. In Aizawa’s arms was Izuku, his Eevee curled up on its trainer’s chest. Izuku’s viridian eyes were still blown wide, unseeing. His body shook periodically with small tremors. They decided he should be here for the final ruling to try and at least bring some peace to his shattered soul.

Mrs. Midoriya was led in next. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying. Confusion was written all over her face. Mr. Midoriya was led in after her. His eyes were glued to the floor, about as wide as his sons. Guilt and sorrow morphed into his facial features. Inha was led in last. Gallery members were all too happy to squeeze together at one end of the right side front row to make room for the little girl, her Growlithe, and the guard who was with her. Judge Nakamura raised her hand and everyone stood. She raised her gavel and brought it down. * **BAM** * “Court is back in session.” They all sat. 

It was quieter in the courtroom, sure, but the atmosphere was so thick with tension it was almost palpable. The judge began. “I will get right into the ruling and the sentencing. In the case of Midoriya Hisashi and Midoriya Inko abusing their son Midoriya Izuku, it has been decided that Midoriya Inko’s mental state was compromised and is unstable. Her sentencing is rehabilitation in a mental hospital until she is deemed fit for living in society again. As for Midoriya Hisashi, charged with a total of sixteen years imprisonment and mental reconstructions, two years having been shaved off for his own mental instability. Within the sixteen years Midoriya Hisashi is being arrested for child abuse, neglect, rape, domestic violence, illegal dealings with villains, the burning down of his house, and gaslighting, each crime adhering to their own criminal court laws to decide the final time. A police escort is waiting outside for each of you. Guards, please escort Mr. Midoriya first and then Mrs. Midoriya.” She hit her gavel to the podium again. * **BAM** *

Mr. Midoriya went numbly and surprisingly compliantly. Mrs. Midoriya struggled a bit. “Akatani! Tell them this is wrong! I did nothing wrong! We did nothing wron-!” * **SLAM** * The double doors closed, cutting off her rant. Izuku’s shaky breath releasing when they left echoed through the room.

“Moving on,” Judge Nakamura continued “is Izuku able speak at this moment?” Aizawa shook his head. “He is still somewhat lucid but do not expect him to produce any coherent sentences. I shall speak for him.” Judge Nakamura nodded. “I understand that you have a special relationship with the boy?”

“I do,” Aizawa admits. “I have known about the abuse for a while but up until recently did not have sufficient evidence to get him out of his home as he was being blackmailed for the lives of his friends and would not tell us what was happening. During that time, I acted as a father figure to him as his own family had turned away from him.”

Judge Nakamura hums and looks down at a few papers on her desk. “I see you have been entered in the foster care system rather recently. Was it in hopes of getting Izuku under your guardianship should something like this happen?” Aizawa nods. “It was, your honor.” Judge Nakamura closes the file. “Very well. If you are able and okay with it, I would like to place Izuku in your care. We have deemed his mental state unstable for the foster system and think it would be better for him to be with those he has close relationships with. Is that okay?” Aizawa nods sharply. “That is perfectly fine with me. I will take care of Izuku to the fullest of my ability.” Judge Nakamura smiles. “I trust that you will. I will also be making counseling mandatory for him. Now, onto the matter of Midoriya Inha,” the little girl flinches, obviously scared. “She is going to need counselling after this. Would it be possible for you to take her as well?”

Aizawa looks down at Izuku. He purses his lips. “With all due respect, your honor, I fear it would be in Izuku’s best interest if they do not live together. He holds a lot of resentment and bad memories connect to her. It may negatively influence his road to recovery. That being said, I do think it would be in both of their best interests that they aren’t completely separated. I think that they should at least talk at some point. If not now, then when they are both fully prepared.” Judge Nakamura nods. “Then I will have to follow standard procedure with her-”

“Your honor,” Principal Nedzu raises a paw, “if it would be alright with the court, until Mrs. Midoriya is fit for motherhood again, and even if that should be until Inha is well into her adult years, UA Trainer’s Academy would be perfectly fine with taking care of her. We will take care of her and make sure that she has the best possible life that we can provide her with. This will also create more opportunities for the siblings to see each other on occasion.” Judge Nakamura hummed, tapping a pen on some papers. “That should be fine but we will have to have child services check in every once in a while. Seeing as Inha had a perfectly normal life considering, I would like her to have some form of contact with her parents as well but that can be arranged on a later date.” She looks up sadly at the little girl in the gallery. “Truly, I am sorry that this has happened. We promise that we will do everything in our power to assure your safety and well-being.” Inha glanced up before curling in further on herself.

Truly a pity. She was so sweet, so innocent. She shouldn’t have been roped into this.

“I suppose that leaves Mr. Midoriya’s Houndoom,” Judge Nakamura moves on. “We cannot very well permit him to stay with Mr. Midoriya if the ownership was abusive. We shall treat it the same as an abuse case.”

Principal Nedzu nods. “Since the initial arrest at the Midoriya household, we have been housing Houndoom. Should Mr. Midoriya be forced to release Houndoom as I am sure will be the case, we will be fully willing with taking care of him, letting him off into the wild should he want that, and we have discussed the possibility of Houndoom passing down to Izuku if the boy and he chooses. They seem close as Houndoom was the only ally Izuku and Eevee had in the confines of their home. He seems particularly protective over Izuku and Eevee as well.”

Judge Nakamura nods. “Alright then we shall go with that. We will get him released as soon as possible and then Houndoom shall choose between staying at UA or being free in the wild. If he chooses UA then he and Izuku will talk on a later date when the boy is fit to about him catching Houndoom. As for now, here is the final ruling from the court:

Midoriya Hisashi has been sentenced to sixteen years imprisonment, Midoriya Inko will be admitted into a mental hospital until she is mentally stable enough to be a mother to Midoriya Inha. Until then UA Trainer’s Academy will have guardianship over Midoriya Inha. As for Midoriya Izuku, Aizawa Shouta, Professional Hero: Eraserhead, shall have permanent guardianship of him having Izuku deemed unfit to ever return to Mr and Mrs. Midoriya’s side. If you choose to adopt him in the time to come, however, you will need to run that through the court and child protective services. The court will take Mr. Midoriya’s Houndoom for up to two days to get him released from Mr. Midoriya and then he will be delivered back to UA Trainer’s Academy. This is the final ruling. This concludes the Midoriya Abuse Case.” She slams her gavel down.

* **BAM** *

____________________________

“It’s okay, Izuku! It’s all over! You need to calm down!”

Someone was talking to him.  _ It’s okay. It’s okay. It’s okay. It’s okay. _

\-----

_ ‘When it comes to Midoriya Izuku, Midoriya Hisashi and Midoriya Inko, you two are his biological parents.’ _

\-----

_ It’s Okay. It’s Okay. It’s Okay. It’s Okay. _

\-----

_ ‘Wh- Hisashi! How many times have I told you that I never did that?! I would never cheat on you!’ ‘Then tell me how that mutt came to breathe!’ _

_ ‘He isn’t my son!’ _

_ ‘He’s lying your honor! We never did anything to him! I don’t know why you continue to call him Midoriya. That boy is not my son!’ _

\-----

_ It’s OkAy. It’s. OkAy. It’s OkAy. It’s OkAy. _

\-----

_ ‘I want you to know Daddy loves you very much, Izu.’ ‘It will be okay, Izuku. You will be okay.’ _

_ ‘Are you trying to bring my family’s name shame?’ _

_ ‘Izuku…? Izuku, listen to me. Don’t go with him. Daddy isn’t thinking right right now.’ ‘Don’t go, sweetie.’ ‘Trust me! Don’t go!’  _

_ ‘Mommy? ‘Hmm?’ ‘m hungry.’ ‘I know… Daddy will surely feed us soon.’ ‘It’s been three days.’ ‘I know…’ ‘It hurts, Mommy.’ ‘I know… Everything will be okay.’ ‘Mommy?’ ‘Hmm?’ ‘I love you.’ ‘I LoVe YoU ToO, IzUkU.’ _

_ ‘My Mommy says people without elements have diseases.’ _

_ ‘’Deku should just stay at home.’ ‘Nobody wants him here anyways.’ ‘Does that mean his parents have them too?’ ‘Have what?’ ‘Cooties!’ ‘Duh!’ ‘I feel bad for his parents.’ ‘Me too.’ _

_ ‘My Mommy said that if she had an elementless kid she would put them up for adoption.’  _

_ ‘Why don’t they do that?’ ‘I dunno.’ ‘They must be stupid.’ ‘Yeah.’ _

\-----

_ IT’S OKAY. IT’S OKAY. IT’S OKAY. IT’S OKAY. _

\-----

_ ‘Who told you that you could go to that camp?’ _

_ ‘You know, you caused your mother a lot of pain doing that. Let me show you just how much pain you caused her.’ _

_ ‘Mommy?’ ‘Yes, Izu?’ ‘Wh- where are you going?’ ‘I’m moving back to Daddy’s room.’ _

_ ‘We are going to have a new addition to our family soon.’ _

_ ‘Why don’t you make yourself useful and pack up all of your things, okay?’ ‘We are moving you to the basement.’ ‘You did good. I’ll be back later, okay? Don’t forget. You are helping Mommy. It’s okay, right?’ _

_ ‘Your sister is coming today, I need something soft to wrap her in.’ His blankie? ‘Izuku.’ Ah. His blankie… _

_ ‘What’s with that look in your eyes, brat? You wouldn’t want me to hurt your sister would you?’ _

_ ‘Remember what I did to your mother when you disobeyed me last time?’ _

\-----

_ IT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAY. _

\-----

_ ‘We’ll see how long this rebellious phase of yours will hold out before I beat it out of you.’ _

_ ‘’So you got yourself a little girlfriend? I doubt she’d be your friend if she saw you like this. So weak. You really think anyone would be friends with you?’ _

_ \----- _

_ IT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAY _

_ \----- _

_ ‘Mama? Who’s dat?’ ‘He’s just a kid from town, sweetie. Daddy’s just helping him with school.’ _

_ ‘Mikumo!’ ‘I don’t know where you get off getting all chummy with my daughter.’ _

_ ‘I’ll make you remember that you aren’t part of this family, Mikumo.’ _

_ ‘You got your element!’ ‘You have to celebrate with us! ‘Sure, why don’t you, Mikumo.’ _

_ ‘AkAtAnI.’ _

_ ‘I thought we call close friends by their first names!’ ‘We do, sweetie.’ ‘Then why are you calling Mikumo by his last name?Is Mikumo not close to us?’ ‘Let’s talk later, Inha.’ _

\-----

_ IT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAY! _

\-----

_ ‘Learn your place before I use your precious friends to remind you where you belong.’ _

_ ‘I won’t tell anyone.’ ‘Why not?’ ‘Because if I do…’ ‘I’ll kill each and every one of your precious friends.’ _

_ ‘Look at you. Already out of breath? This is why you kept coming back in bandages. You’re pathetic. Even Inha’s stronger than you. I should just train her ins-’ ‘NO!’ _

_ ‘You saved her another day. What a hero.’ _

_ ‘You better do well or I might just have to introduce Inha to our little tutoring sessions.’ _

_ ‘I expect big things from you, Akatani.’ Y- yes, sir.’ ‘You know, I was talking with Inha last night and it seems she is struggling with school a bit. She was wondering if she could come join us for a tutoring session or two. What do you think, Akatani?’ ‘I- I’ll do well, s- sir.’ _

_ ‘YOU HIT HER!’ ‘That’s right. I did. Because someone decided it was a grand idea to make a mockery of me. What are you going to do to fix it?’ _

_ ‘That’s right! Your daddy-dearest sold you to us two days ago!’ _

_ ‘Why…?’ ‘Why?! Do you seriously think I give two flying feathers about what happens to you? I thought to myself, ‘I minus well get some money off of ya.’ _

_ ‘Th- then what about protecting Inha and Mrs. Midoriya?’ _

_ ‘I am going to make such a profit off of you. But first, I need to see just how good you are in bed.’ _

\-----

_ IT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAYIT’SOKAY! _

_ \----- _

_ ‘Have you by chance heard of gaslighting?’ _

\-----

Izuku- Mikumo- Akatani- Li-

\-----

_ ‘Get up, LiTtLe MaN.’ _

\-----

Hands find his hair. They are so warm, so kind. Such an unfamiliar feeling. Such an unfamiliar feeling and yet it feels safe. It feels like home.

\-----

_ ‘My Dad used to do this for me when I was younger and afraid or hurt too.’ _

\-----

“It’s okay, Izuku. You are safe now.” A voice. So, so kind. “Just sleep. Everything is okay.”

_ Okay… _

He doesn’t understand and right now, Izuku doesn’t think he really wants to understand. He is just so, so tired. So... he sleeps.

____________________________

“This way, Ma’am”

Inko was ushered out of the car. She stopped and looked up at the building before her.  _ A mental hospital? Why? I don’t understand. Gaslighting? What is that? What about Inha? What is going to happen to her? Hisashi? Is he going to jail? For what? Where did it all go wrong? _

\-----

_ ‘I’m sorry, Mr. and Mrs. Midoriya, your son has no elemental power.’ _

\-----

_ Son? What son? I can’t- I don’t understand. _

“Midoriya Inko, being admitted into the psychiatric ward.

\-----

_ ‘He’s just a child, Hisashi!’ _

_ *SHATTER* _

_ ‘Inko! I’m so sorry! I’ll call an ambulance!’ _

\-----

_ When? _

\-----

_ ‘If you think you are going to come back without a pokemon or with a weak one, don’t bother coming back at all.’ _

_ ‘Are you trying to bring my family’s name shame?’ _

_ ‘You whore! How dare you cheat on me!’ ‘I didn’t, Hisashi! I swear! Izuku is you-’ ‘I would never pass along elementless genes!’ _

_ ‘Izuku…?’ _

\-----

_ Izuku? Who was that again? They called Akatani ‘Izuku’. I don’t- He’s- _

_ \----- _

_ ‘Izuku…?’ ‘Come on, Izuku.’ ‘Izuku, listen to me. Don’t go with him. Daddy isn’t thinking right right now.’ ‘Izuku. Come. Now.’ ‘Don’t go, sweetie. Trust me! Don’t go!’ A little boy’s yelp. ‘I said, ‘Come.’ Smokey, get the brats pokemon.’ ‘Izuku!’  _

_ ‘What did you do to him?’ ‘Nothing, my love.’ ‘I- I’ll call the police!’ ‘Oh? I don’t think you will. Unless you want me to do worse.’ I have to protect IzUkU. _

_ ‘Of course, you’ll be sleeping in his room! After all, I don’t want a whore in my bed.’ _

\-----

_ I never cheated! Why?! Why did it go wrong?! When did it go wrong?! _

_ \----- _

_ ‘Mommy? ‘Hmm?’ ‘m hungry.’ ‘I know… Daddy will surely feed us soon.’ ‘It’s been three days.’ ‘I know…’ ‘It hurts, Mommy.’ ‘I know… Everything will be okay.’ ‘Mommy?’ ‘Hmm?’ ‘I love you.’ ‘I Love you too, IzUkU.’ _

_ ‘Everything will be okay, M- Mommy. Everything will be ok-’ ‘Make it stop…’ It didn’t. Inko didn’t want to go into Hisashi’s room anymore. Every time it hurt. Her body no longer felt like her own. ‘It’s okay, Mommy. Everything will be okay.’ She needs to protect… her son…  _

_ Why did he have to be born without an element?  _

\-----

“Room 301, gaslighting victim. Abuse victim. Needs to be under close supervision.”

_ Why? I haven’t done anything! Why is everyone assuming I’ve done something wrong?! _

\------

_ ‘Izuku’s at camp now. It will be okay-’ The door unlocks. _

_ ‘Shouldn’t you be leaving to pick up the brat by now?’  _

_ ‘Izuku is at camp right now. He will be gone for the week.’ _

_ ‘Oh, my love, you know better than that, don’t you? Fine, I won’t call him back.’ ‘Y- you won’t?!’ ‘No. He can have his fun, play with his little kiddie friends and whatnot. But you know, if I can’t have fun training my dear, dear son, I am going to need to entertain myself some other way.’ _

_ ‘You know what that means, right, my love?’ _

_ ‘W- we don’t have any more condoms.’ ‘Oh, we don’t need any of those. I’ve been thinking, Inko. If some man decided to screw my wife and have a child with her then the child I’ve always wanted isn’t really mine, now it is?’ _

_ ‘My love, I want to have a child with you.’ _

\-----

_ A child. Inha is my child! What did you do to Inha?! _

_ \----- _

_ ‘Mommy?’ ‘Yes, Izu?’ ‘Wh- where are you going?’ ‘I’m moving back to Daddy’s room.’ _

_ ‘We are going to have a new addition to our family soon.’ _

_ ‘I said, I moved your brat to the basement. You’re pregnant, not deaf.’ ‘Y- you can’t be serious! Hisashi he’s six!’ _

_ ‘Oh, my love, why are you defending him? We are about to have our daughter, Inko. She is what matters now.’ ‘I- Izuku m- m- matters too.’ ‘You still love that disgrace? After you cheated on me?!’ ‘I- I didn’t! H- Hisashi, you know I wo-’ *SLAP* ‘Inkooooooo. You know I don’t want to do this to you.’ _

_ ‘It’s a shame he had to be born to you.’ _

\-----

_ I didn’t cheat! I didn’t! I didn’t! It’s Akatani’s fault! None of this would have happened if he didn’t come into the picture! Hisashi was finally nice! He didn’t hit me anymore! He loved me again! _

_ \----- _

_ ‘H- Hisashi! M- My water broke! Sh- she’s coming!’ _

_ \----- _

_ Inha came. Inha made it better! Inha made Hisashi nice again! _

_ \----- _

_ Pictures began to disappear from the walls. A green-haired boy began to disappear. Inko only saw him in passing. _

_ ‘I am just taking Mikumo down to tutor him.’ ‘Mikumo? Who is that?’ ‘Him, obviously?’ ‘You mean Izuku? Hisashi you can’t just-’ _

_ ‘Inko.’ A sigh. ‘Are you feeling alright? I thought you were better than this. Of course, this is Mikumo.’ A child’s viridian eyes glance up at her hopefully, scaredly. A man sighs. ‘We will talk tonight. Please take care of Inha.’ _

_ ‘Izuku. His name is Izuku.’ ‘You know better, my love.’ ‘He isn’t part of this family anymore. I thought we agreed on this?’ _

_ \----- _

_ He’s not…  _ “The belongings of yours that are permitted in this ward will be delivered shortly. We will be back soon to discuss the details of your stay.”  _ He’s not… in this family…? Who’s not? _

_ \----- _

_ ‘I would never cut Izuku from my life! H- Hisashi, wait. Not today…’ _

_ ‘It will be easier, Inko, if you just accept the fact that this ‘Izuku’ doesn’t exist’ _

_ ‘Illusion, my love. He was nothing more than an illusion. It would be easier for you if you only believed that. Why don’t we focus on the real child, okay?’ _

_ ‘Don’t worry, I’ll help you forget.’ _

_ \----- _

Inko falls to her knees, clutching her head.  _ No… NO NO NO! These aren’t real! Fake! He’s fake! _

_ \----- _

_ ‘Akatani.’ Right. If his name is Mikumo he has to have a last name, right? Viridian eyes look up at her in shock. _

_ ‘I thought we call close friends by their first names!’ ‘We do, sweetie.’ ‘Then why are you calling Mikumo by his last name?Is Mikumo not close to us?’ ‘Let’s talk later, Inha.’ _

_ It’s better this way. It’s safer this way. _

\-----

From there it was all smooth sailing so what went wrong?

Inko couldn’t process any of this. Every time she tried to recall that name: Izuku. Every time it felt like a stab in the heart. She could feel phantom hands all over her body every time she tried. It hurt. She hated it! It’s better to-

\-----

_ ‘Don’t worry I’ll help you-’ _

_ \----- _

\- forget. 

\-----

_ ‘Have you by chance heard of gaslighting?’ _

_ ‘When it comes to Midoriya Izuku, Midoriya Hisashi and Midoriya Inko, you two are his biological parents.’ _

_ \----- _

Inko let her hands fall to her sides.

_ I don’t understand…  _

____________________________

“Mister?” Inha reached forward from the back seat and tugged on the stone man’s shirt. “Where’s Mom and Dad?”

The man, Cementoss, they said, sighs. “I am so sorry, little one,” he says. “You shouldn’t have been dragged into this. Your parents aren’t going to be around for a while.” She frowned. “Why not?” “Your father… he did something really bad. You might not understand now but in time you will. I’m sorry.”

Inha looks down at her hands. “S- so I won’t see them… for a long time?” The man hums. Tears come to her eyes. “Wh- what is going to happen to me and A- Akatani then?” “We will be taking care of you, little one,” Cementoss says softly. “Don’t worry. We won’t hurt you. Akatani…” He sighs. “He is being taken care of as well.”

Inha wipes at her eyes. Growlithe whimpers.  _ I want Mommy and Daddy and Akatani… I don’t understand! _

____________________________

Hisashi felt numb. He had been so sure he was right.

\-----

_ ‘I’m sorry, Mr. and Mrs. Midoriya, your son has no elemental power.’ _

\-----

He was so sure… He would never hurt his own child! He loves Inha! He does!

\-----

_ ‘When it comes to Midoriya Izuku, Midoriya Hisashi and Midoriya Inko, you two are his biological parents.’ _

\-----

He stares at the chains between his hands.  _ I can’t believe it. He wasn’t supposed to be. He wasn’t. I hurt my own… I can’t… I couldn’t have!  _

\-----

_ ‘Dad! Mom! Where are you going!’ Inha struggles against the guards removing her from the courtroom. _

\-----

_ I’m sorry… I can’t be your father… I’m unfit to call myself a Dad.  _

_ And Inko? I hurt her for so many years!  _

_ \----- _

_ ‘Have you by chance heard of gaslighting?’ _

_ \----- _

No, he hadn’t heard of it before.

_ I did that… I did that to all of them! _

* **SCREEEEEEECH!** * Hisashi pitches forward as the policeman driving the police car slams on the break. “What-” * **BOOM** * The world spins around him as the vehicle flies into the air in a flash of light and fire. His ears ring from the close proximity of the explosion. Hisashi blacks out for a moment when it hits the ground with a * **BAM** * It rolls and rolls and rolls until it comes to a stop upside down. Hisashi’s head throbs as he hangs, stuck handing to the seat by the seat belt. He bleeds heavily from his head. The police car is on fire. People are screaming and yelling. His vision is going in and out when two hands reach through the window and save him, pulling him out. When he looks up through the blood cascading over his eye, he is met with two familiar faces.

A pink haired woman and a light-purple haired man, Jessica Mober and Jonathan McCalistar, the villains he sold Aka- Izuku to.

Jessica smirks. “You broke your contract, Mr. Midoriya,” her voice sounds so quiet behind the ringing in his ears. “Not only that, but you let the heroes take our product. Our boss is very unhappy with you.” Jonathan nods. “Don’t worry. We won’t kill you.  _ He will _ . He’s been looking for new specimens for next-level Nomu. Death is too pretty a punishment for what you’ve done.” Jessica cackles. “Since you like inflicting so much pain,” a purple mist grows behind her, “lets see how much you like it inflicted on yourself!”

Hisashi tries to struggle but he can’t. He’s weak. He’s lost the will to fight. He doesn’t deserve even to call for help after all he has done.

One who inflicts pain but has never felt it never knows truly how bad it hurts until they feel it themselves but when he was kidnapped and strapped to that table, and when that blade sliced into his body, Midoriya Hisashi got a taste of his own medicine.


	18. Recreating

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The aftermath of the trial.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone feeling?

“KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIISS!”

Shouta instantly felt tired. Chiyo took a step back and he pulled his shirt back over his torso. “There we go,” the old woman said. “You are all patched up.” She had been coming over to heal Shouta periodically since the burning door fell on his back. “Thank you, Chiyo,” Shouta stood, stretching. It felt nice not feeling the slight burning sensation on his back. She nods. “It is no problem, Shouta. Do you want me to take a look at Izuku’s wounds as well?”

He looks over at the couch. It’s been almost five hours since the trial and Izuku hasn’t woken up yet. Neither has Chip. They haven’t made a peep. “He will sleep for a while, sonny,” Chiyo sighs. “How long do you think?” She walks over to the sleeping boy and sweeps the bangs from his face. “Well over a day,” she states.

Shouta’s eyes widened. “A day?! Like, twenty-four hours?!” 

Chiyo nods. Her face speaks of sadness. “I’ve dealt with many mentally and emotionally wounded people and pokemon in my time, Shouta,” she states. Mom, Hizashi, and Nemuri poke their heads out of his office room upon hearing the conversation. “They are going through shock. What just happened they cannot process. Eleven years, Shouta. Their minds have been torn apart, rebuilt by that man, and torn apart again and again and again. The mind can only take so much. It needs rest. Finally, after eleven years of torture and abuse, they’ve been set free but not exactly in a good way. Everything has been stripped from them. Izuku, Chip, they can’t mentally process what has happened. Not yet. So let them rest. They need it more than you do when you pull two all-nighters and go through two pots of coffee in the morning. If they sleep past thirty-two hours, call me again but until then just let them sleep.”

Shouta nods sadly. “Alright…”

“Do you want me to look at his wounds then?” Chiyo asks. Shouta nods. “Let me get him in some more comfortable clothing real quick.” He had kept Izuku in the rental suit he had gotten him, only removing his shoes, blazer, and tie trying to not wake up the boy. Shouta thinks it would be rather uncomfortable to sleep for many hours in a suit like that. He shuffles his arms underneath Izuku and lifts him. “Here, let me take Chip,” Nemuri whispers, scooping the Eevee from his resting position on Izuku’s chest. “Thanks,” he whispers. In his own bedroom, Shouta makes quick work of getting Izuku in a t-shirt and shorts. Even though Chiyo says he won’t wake up, Shouta would think it bad if he accidentally did while Shouta was undressing him, especially since he was raped not even a week ago. But just as she said, he didn’t wake up.

Not even a sound.

He hates seeing all of the scars Izuku has gathered on his body, the patches of uneven skin from burns never healed, the jagged cuts and scars from poorly odone stitches or no stitches at all when they were needed. He hates seeing the ribs that seem to be trying to break out of his skin, the boy so thin he is like a toothpick waiting to snap between Shouta’s fingers. He hates seeing what years of neglect and abuse has done to the boy he considers a son.

Shouta slides Izuku into the navy blue bathrobe he loves so much. It is way too big for his, laying up on the floor and almost slips from his shoulders but shouta bundles him up in his arms and leaves the bedroom. He keeps Izuku curled to his chest when he sits on the couch again. Chiyo does a quick check-up, a small kiss, and steps away. “If anything happens, call me.” He hums, absentmindedly running his hands through the boy’s hair.

Mom escorts Chiyo to the door. She turns after closing it. “How does dinner sound?” Hizashi, always one to try and lighten the mood, raises his hand. “That sounds amazing!” He looks over at Shouta. “What do you thin...k? Shouta?” The raven-haired man looks up tiredly. Mom swiftly crosses the room and kneels by him. His black eyes widen when he is pulled forward into a hug. And then the tears hit.

“Mom, I-” “Shh… it’s alright, Shouta,” she hushes. He’s just so exhausted. So worried. So frightened. He doesn’t know what to do. In his arms is his son, completely shattered by the world. Shouta’s never had a child. He doesn’t know how to do this. He’s afraid he is going to make a mistake. He doesn’t think Izuku could handle it if he does. “We will get through this together,” she reassures him. “That is why we are all staying over. Izuku isn’t just your son. He’s my grandson and at this point, Hizashi’s nephew and Nemuri’s, well,” she pokes him, “we will have to wait and see on that.” Shouta, in spite of himself, blushes. “The point is, you aren’t going through this alone. Neither is Izuku and Chip. This is a team effort, okay?” He nods, sitting back up and wiping his eyes. “S- sorry… I just-” Nemuri plops down by him. “We understand, Shouta.”

Hizashi nods. “No worries! On that note, let’s just order take out. I think we could use a good movie or something.” Shouta looks up. “But Izuku-” “Is sleeping,” Mom states, standing. “Pizza?” Shouta huffs. “Only if I get one without toppings.”

Even while eating and watching a movie, Shouta didn’t let go of Izuku. He couldn’t bring himself to. The most he did was set Izuku to lean against his arm while he ate so the boy wouldn’t get dirty. “Shouta, he won’t wake up,” Hizashi pushes against Shouta’s shoulder. “Just go get dressed. You can have him back after.”

It was a team effort getting Shouta to get ready for bed between Hizashi, Mom, and Nemuri. He just… What if he woke up while Shouta was getting in his pajamas or brushing his teeth, hmm? What then? But, alas, he got ready for bed and Izuku and Chip were still asleep.

“You know you two don’t have to stay, right?” Shouta questioned, picking up Izuku from the couch because that is where Nemuri would be sleeping. Mom has the guest bedroom, Hizashi the living room floor, and Izuku’s bedroom was empty until further notice because he wanted the boy to be able to have his own space when he woke up. Even now, Shouta couldn’t believe they had actually done it. Izuku was under his guardianship now. “We know,” Nemuri said, laying out the pillow and blanket she brought over. “But if we are going to improve our relationship with him we need to be here when he wakes up.” She clicked her tongue when her Liepard and Butterfree landed right where she was going to sit. It was a bit crowded with her pokemon, Hizashi’s three, his three, Izuku’s, and Mom’s but pokemon were living things too. It was unethical to leave them in their pokeballs while they were staying here. Hizashi nods, removing his glasses and setting them on the coffee table. “The little listener doesn’t have a family now, or, like, he never did, so we are his family now. I’m fine with you all calling me Yamada until he can stand you using my first name.” Shouta smiles softly. “Thanks, guys. Good night.”

He told Mom good night as well before moving to his bedroom. Shouta pulled back the covers and oh so gently laid Izuku down, laying Chip next to him. Almost immediately Seviper slithered onto the bed and wrapped around Izuku, pressing against his back. Absol jumped up and curled up beside Izuku’s head, resting his own on the mess of green curls. Umbreon curled up by Izuku’s feet. Shouta pet the pokemon. “Thank you to all of you too.” He got in and turned off the lamp. In the dark, he looked up at his ceiling.

“Thank you,” he whispered. “Thank you for letting me get him out…”

The next morning Izuku still had yet to wake up. No surprise there. 

“We have to go, Sho!” Hizashi yelled. Mom pat him on the back. “I’ll take care of him. Principal Nedzu wants you to at least make an appearance for homeroom. Even if you have the rest of this week and the next week off, you owe it to your homeroom class to at least thank them for coming. Yesterday was one hell of a day. They are all probably a bit shaken up.” Shouta frowns. He looks past her at Izuku who is currently curled up in his bathrobe and a blanket on the brown loveseat in the living room. Nemuri’s hand lands on his shoulder. “Just a couple hours, Shouta. You won’t even be gone for the whole school day.” Shouta sighs. “Alright… Love you, Mom.”

She waves and smiles. “Let Grandma Aizawa be a grandmother for a bit. Shoo shoo.”

____________________________

Katsuki kept his head low when he walked into class the next day. He didn’t really feel like acting confident and cool right now. Right now… he didn’t feel the right to be. At least it wasn’t only him. The extras in his class were all pretty quiet too. Dunceface and Pinky were trying their best to crack a joke but it kept failing. Eyebags, the Kanto extra, Round Face, and Icy-Hot were all gathered in the back of the room talking quietly. They were the closest to Deku.

_ I used to be… _ Katsuki’s fists shook.  _ Why was I so stupid?! _

The door to the classroom opened and everyone instantly ran to their seat. In strolled their teacher. He looked perfectly normal. Well, he would have if it weren’t for the slightly more slouched than usual shoulders and the greatly larger eyebags. His footsteps were heavy, unusual for the usually silent-stepping man. Even Umbreon seemed to hold a sad gate to him. “Well,” Aizawa-sensei stood at the podium, “good morning, class.” Round Face immediately raised her hand. “Sensei, how’s-” “Izuku has been asleep since the trial.” Eye’s widened all across the classroom. “To put it simply, he and his Eevee have gone into shock. Don’t worry about him, I am taking care of him. He should wake up sometime today. First and foremost,” Aizawa-sensei comes out from behind the podium and freaking bows, “thank you all who made it. I understand those that couldn’t but we felt your spirit. It was greatly appreciated that you came.” He stood up straight. “When Izuku heard you were all coming and when he walked into the courtroom, I could tell your presence meant a lot to him.”

Katsuki looked out the window, chin resting on hand.  _ I doubt my presence did anything. _

“That being said, I apologize again,” Aizawa-sensei went back behind the podium. “Quite literally, Izuku’s and Chip’s mental states are in shambles and me, Present Mic, Midnight, and my mother who came for backup are in the middle of putting it back together. I won’t be returning to school until the week after next week. At that time, so will Izuku and Chip. I don’t think I need to say this but please don’t bring up anything unless they come to you about it first.” They all nod. “Aside from that, I hope you all learned something useful. I will tell you now, many court cases aren’t like that. The Midoriya family is severely broken. The yelling and fighting, sure, it happens, but a lot of it is more subdued. It was also pretty confusing for you to follow along with.”

Iida raises his hand. “With all due respect, Sensei. It was quite difficult. May we ask you who Akatani is? Mrs. Midoriya seemed very adamant on that fact. If we are to be dealing with the mentally unstable in our line of work, I believe this would be a beneficial lesson.” Katsuki glanced towards their teacher. He’d like to know too. He’s met Inha a couple of times. They live in a tiny town, sue him. There is no way not to know her. He’s heard the name from her mouth a lot during those times too but as far as Katsuki is aware of, there is no Akatani in Vaniville Town.

Aizawa-sensei nods. “Fair enough. This will be a good lesson.” He turns to the board and writes the word ‘Gaslighting’ on it before turning back to them and points at it. “Can anyone tell us what this means?” “The judge said something about manipulation,” earlobes replied. Aizawa-sensei nodded. “It is. More specifically, it is when one person damages the mind of another to the point where they question their own sanity and what they know. Mrs. Midoriya and Izuku were under this influence for eleven years. Believe it or not, Mr. Midoriya was also gaslighting himself. This leads to another point of element and quirk discrimination. Because Mr. Midoriya simply could not accept the fact that his son had no element he believed his lie to be a cheater and that Izuku simply was not blood related to him which, I think you could all see the direct resemblance they had to one another.”

“Well, Mido- Erm- Izuku was a whole lot shorter than him,” Rip-off Spiderman commented. “It would be hard to tell if they weren’t in the same room.”

Aizawa-sensei hums. “Well that is what years of malnutrition will do to you. He was starved for years and it greatly stunted his growth.” The mood dropped hard. “That being said, after a year or so of the correct diet, I expect him to grow taller than many of you. He does have the genes for it.”

Katsuki scowled.  _ I used to make fun of him for being so puny. _

“Back on the topic of gaslighting and the Midoriya’s,” Aizawa-sensei continued, “Mr. Midoriya worked hard to erase all presence of Izuku in the house. It didn’t come out in the courtroom but Izuku was locked in the basement from ages six to fifteen, the only time he was allowed out was going to school. This also greatly damaged his eyesight being in such darkness and then the blinding natural light of the world hitting his eyes so suddenly thus burning his eyes. By doing so, this made a prime opportunity to abuse Mrs. Midoriya too. Domestic violence is no joke. Just because two people are married does not mean all is good and well. Mr. Midoriya took the advantage of fear to warp his wife’s mind into not believing that a ‘Midoriya Izuku’ existed and replaced him with ‘Akatani Mikumo.’ He also did this so that his daughter, Midoriya Inha, never knew that Izuku existed, simply thinking he was a boy named Akatani that lived below their house because he had no family. I think one of the worst parts of this whole ordeal is that this little girl was dragged into this without knowing what was happening. Mr. Midoriya was striving for a perfect family, as he called it. During his time in isolation, Mr. Midoriya took special care of Izuku’s mind along with the physical abuse, training Izuku to respond to that name and soon that Izuku was not part of their family anymore. In order to preserve his sanity, Izuku began to distance himself from them by physically changing his appearance. The way he messes up his uniform and has all of those piercings is a result of trying to make himself, and I quote exactly from the courtroom, ‘Not Midoriya.’”

A shaky hand rose. Round Face again. “Sensei… we’ve been calling him Midoriya this whole time… Is that-” “There was nothing you could have done about that,” Aizawa-sensei cut her off. “He was being blackmailed into silence at that time. In regards to who Akatani is though, he was the product of Mr. Midoriya’s gaslighting and an attempt to erase Izuku from the Midoriya family. This is what long-term gaslighting can lead to. It usually does not get this far or this bad. There are some serious things that need to be fixed. Any other questions?” … “Alright. This is still a school and as such I want a report on what you learned about court cases and the structure of them. I will be back every so often during the rest of this week and the next. Thank you, again, for coming.” He bows again and leaves the room.

Katsuki grits his teeth. He stands so fast his chair falls to the ground. He doesn’t care. The blonde rushes from the room. “Sensei!” he calls down the hall, rushing to meet his teacher. “Bakugou, what is it?” Katsuki’s glares at the ground. “I- Can I see him?” “Baku-” “It wasn’t only his sucky parents!” the blonde yelled. “It wasn’t… It was everyone in Vaniville… The teachers, the kids, all of the parents. Even me… I- We went to a summer camp when we were six and Deku said something to me. We got in a fight and he said that I hurt my mother too. I didn’t understand at the time but he used his freaky powers and since them I- I alienated him from the other students. I thought I was protecting him because they were all bullying him but in reality I was just… I was scared! I messed up! I used to join in when they called him names! I watched him get worse and worse and I did nothing!” Katsuki looked up, regret written in his face. “He used to be my best friend! When we were four before everyone said I shouldn’t be because he is elementess. And I just- I just… left… him…” He dropped his head again. “I want to apologize… I didn’t know but I could have. Everyone there could have. No one cared enough to notice the signs. He was just some elementless brat with a crippled Eevee. I should have been there for him…”

A strong hand landed on his shoulder. “Bakugou, look up.” He did. Aizawa-sensei’s face was unusually soft. “We all made mistakes,” the man said. “You can’t help what you were raised to believe. Everyone there was at fault. It is good that you have realized your own mistakes. At some point I will try and bring you over but at this very moment I am afraid I cannot let you see him. I will give him your regards, though.” Katsuki lowers his head. “Thank you, Sensei.”

“Then us too?” Katsuki looks over his shoulder. Round Face, Kanto Extra, Eyebags, and Icy-Hot all stand there. Round face waves. “Sorry, we didn’t mean to eavesdrop. We want to see him too.” Aizawa-sensei sighs. “My house is bound to be run over by kids. Same to you. I will bring you over when I can.” They all bow. “Thank you, Sensei.” He nods and leaves.

“Sooo…” Katsuki rolls his eyes and turns fully to them. “What, Round Face?” She grins. “The class wants to set up a party for Izuku when he gets back.” “And?” “Annnnnd we want your help,” she chirps. Katsuki lets out a long sigh. “What do you need…?”

____________________________

“Eraserhead, Present Mic, Midnight,” Principal Nedzu greets them all. He had called them in before Shouta left for home. “I am sure you have heard the news by now.” Hizashi tilts his head. “What news?”

“Midoriya Hisashi’s police vehicle was blown up,” the mammal states. Shouta’s eyes widen. “Yesterday on the way to the prison it was attacked by villains. All of the police personnel on the scene were killed but the only body not to be found is Mr. Midoriya’s.” Shouta stumbled back.  _ Izuku… I left Izuku at home… _ “For now, I urge you not to tell Izuku about this while he is still mentally recovering. I just wanted you all to be aware of it.”

Nemuri nods. “Thank you, Nedzu.”

As soon as they left the principal’s office, Shouta took off. Neither of his friends tried to stop him. They had to stay at school anyway. The only thing on his mind was that he absolutely  _ needed _ to get home. So he sped a little down the roads of Lumiose City. Izuku and his mother could be in danger! His hands shook so hard as he tried to unlock the door that he almost couldn’t. As soon as he heard the * **click** * of the lock he slammed the door open. 

“Eevee!” “My goodness, boy!” Mom screeched. “I taught you better than to enter a house like that!”

Shouta panted, looking around. “Did anyone come while I was gone?” he locked the door behind him, checking the peephole. “No,” she huffed. Shouta let out a breath of relief. He turned around and met rainbow eyes. His heart stopped. “Chip…” The Eevee jumped away from Mom and sprinted up to him. Shouta fell to his knees and caught the little pokemon. “You’re awake!” “Vee!” “He woke up a little under half an hour ago so please do try and be sensible and not slam doors all willy nilly.” Shouta huffed and stood, carrying Chip with him. The Eevee was shaking.  _ He’s probably shaken up by everything. _ “Where is Izuku?” Mom jerked her head to the loveseat. “He’s sleeping.”

Absol lifted his head. Shouta had left him with them. The pokemon had gotten quite attached to Izuku. Currently he was under Izuku’s propped up legs, curled around them, his body almost falling off of the seat. Shouta sighed and sat down. “Sorry about that.” Mom shook her head. “Don’t worry about it. What had you in such a jumpy mood?” Shouta glances down at Chip. “Later.” She hums. 

Shouta couldn’t shake the feeling of paranoia. He ended up picking Izuku up again and the two curling up on the couch. He wanted to be there when Izuku woke up. He needed to be. Chip curled up around his neck, not sleeping, more zoning out than anything. There wasn’t much for him to do if he couldn’t see anyway but it was probably more of an unwillingness to face what happened the day before. Eventually he fell asleep again. By the time Nemuri and Hizashi had gotten back from school, it was nearing the twenty-four hour mark for Izuku to be asleep. He was beginning to worry but decided to give it the night. If the greenette hadn’t woken up by morning then he’d call Chiyo. They spent the rest of the evening playing quiet games and coaxing Chip to eat something when he woke up again. And Izuku just slept peacefully against Shouta’s chest. Every once in a while he would shift or his eyebrows would furrow. Nearing nine o’clock he began to whimper occasionally. Each time Shouta would calm him the best he could and the boy would settle to his once again peaceful slumber.

At night Shouta got into bed but he kept Izuku close to him. He leaned his back up against the backboard of his bed and let Izuku sleep against him and Chip rest on his lap. Like last time, Seviper, Umbreon, and Absol curled around them. This time, a few others joined in though. Liepard joined the pile and Butterfree slept with her wings dragged over Absol’s back. Hizashi’s Exploud sat off the bed but leaned against it. His Zangoose curled up by Shouta and his Swoobat rested on Exploud’s head. It was a dog pile of pokemon and it was sweltering hot but Izuku looked so at peace and when he woke up he would see all of the support he had around him so Shouta sucked it up and eventually he dozed off

…

…

…

“Sol,” Shouta’s eyebrows furrowed. Absol nudged his arm again. “Absol.” He sighed, being woken up from his rather peaceful sleep. “What is itttt…?” The boy in his arms moved. Shouta’s eyes shot open. Swoobat flew over and turned on the bedside lamp. “Izuku?” he whispered into the night. Viridian eyes fluttered open. The greenette lifted his head and looked up at Shouta. Shouta’s momentary excitement and relief when the boy woke up instantly vanished when tears filled those green orbs.

Izuku is awake and he remembers everything.

____________________________

Izuku is awake.

And so is Hizashi, Nemuri, and Kimika(Aizawa’s Mother). They were all listening to the cries that echoed down the hall from Shouta’s room. Each and every one of them broke their hearts just a little bit more. Kimika slid out of the guest bed and quietly left the room. Hizashi and Nemuri were both sitting up on the couch. “Kimi-” She shook her head and Hizashi closed his mouth. The older Aizawa went into the kitchen and heated up some chicken broth in the microwave. Izuku hadn’t eaten since the morning of the trial so something light would be the best bet. By the time the microwave went off, the cries hadn’t died down even a bit. He is just. so. broken. 

Eventually, the door to Shouta’s bedroom opened. The broth had since then cooled to a warmer state that wouldn’t burn Izuku’s tongue. A few of the pokemon drifted in and settled around in the living room. Shouta took Izuku to the bathroom first waiting outside the door. When they finally entered the living room, the teen was back in Shouta’s arms. He looked tired despite having slept for well over twenty-four hours. Hizashi and Nemuri skooed over for them. There was no talking, no smiling, no anything. Kimika leaned over and turned on the television, turning the volume down real low. Izuku and Chip couldn’t see it but it was better than sitting in silence and while the midnight show played in the background, Shouta got Izuku to slowly but surely drink the bowl of chicken broth.

“Are you tired?” Shouta finally asked. Kimika took the empty bowl from him. Izuku hummed quietly. “Dunno…” “That’s alright. We will wait until you are ready.” Izuku just hummed again and went silent. 

Kimika watched her son as he ran his fingers through Izuku’s hair. Akira, her late husband, used to do that a lot when Shouta was younger. She revels in how much Shouta has grown since having met Izuku. He would never have done this before. Kimika is so proud of her son and so grateful for Izuku. If only it didn’t take the boy completely shattering for Shouta to come out of his shell again. 

____________________________

Everyone froze when they heard Izuku take a shaky breath again. Shouta pulled the boy a bit closer. “You can cry again if you need to,” he said softly. Izuku shook his head. “I’m not- It’s-” despite his best efforts he did cry again. “I’m just- I’m scared…” Shouta’s heart twisted. “E- everything hurts… It- I- I don’t-” he buried his face in Shouta’s shirt. The raven-haired man acted like the rock in the storm. Izuku was falling apart in his hands. He’d catch the pieces and put them back together when the boy was ready.

Izuku and Chip didn’t speak much after that night. They were awake, sure, but they minus well still be asleep. Most of the time they just looked out of the window blankly. Shouta found out they could only see about two inches in front of their eyes. It was a battle to get them to eat and at this point he didn’t trust them to take a bath in fear of them drowning themselves. They seemed perfectly fine with just washing with a rag and bar soap.

But things couldn’t stay like this forever. He needs to start pushing them towards healing soon. He got a call saying that most of the belongings in the basement weren’t touched by the fire and as Izuku is the only one mentally fit, and not missing or assumed dead, left in the family they need his word on what to do with it. Shouta plans on bringing Izuku back there for him to retrieve his belongings but not before the boy is prepared. He thinks it will be good for Izuku to physically leave that house himself but for that to happen he needs Izuku to actually be able to see.

“Are you ready to go?” he asks. Izuku stands next to Mom, his arm wrapped around her’s to guide him. Chip is curled up around his neck. Hizashi and Nemuri were already down in the car. They had offered to give them space and go back home but Shouta said it was fine. He wants Izuku to learn that they are ‘okay’ as well.

He’s banned that word from existence in his house, by the way.

It is Saturday morning and he set up the appointment for the eye doctor today. Izuku glances up at him. The poor boy is shaking in his shoes. Aka, slippers because he doesn’t have any right now. Hizashi has called taking him clothing shopping when they can see again. Shouta hates forcing Izuku to do this but he needs the kid to do  _ something _ . He can’t let Izuku just sit and do nothing forever no matter how much he wants to coddle the boy forever.

Still, he can’t force him either. Not with how fragile he is right now. Shouta walks up and takes Izuku’s free hand. The boy flinches a bit, turning up to look at him. Shouta gives his hand a little squeeze. “You haven’t been out of this house since the trial. One step out is one step towards a brighter future. You know, one that you can see.” Izuku raises an unimpressed eyebrow but it was better than nothing. With a nod from Mom, the two gently guide Izuku and Chip out of the house. One step leads to another. They just need to get the ball rolling and pray they don’t loose the momentum.

Hizashi rambles in the car. “Imagine how much better you will be at sewing when you can see!”  _ That _ gets a reaction from Izuku and Chip. Sitting in the back seat, leaning against Shouta’s arm, he lifts his head in the direction of Hizashi who is driving. The blonde nods. “Mhmm! I saw you prick your finger like five times in your first assignment just trying to do a straight line!” Izuku huffs, turning away but Shouta sees the way his fist curls.

In the three days since the trial, Izuku was suddenly hit with just how not normal his life was before. He’s scared and wounded and broken but that previous anger is starting to show itself again.

The trip to the eye doctors was one hell of a journey. Izuku was  _ not _ having it. He and Chip did get the lasik eye surgery in the end but with a panic attack and almost spasm but not in between. Bless the doctor who had the patience to deal with them. What would have been a twenty minute appointment ended up doubling. Shouta misjudged how much of that hatred had festered and the presence of another adult being so close doing such invasive work on his eyes, even if it only takes like a minute per eye did not fare well. Izuku and Chip were practically hanging off of him by the end of it. Both of them had bandages wrapped around their eyes with strict instructions to not take them off for twenty-four hours and then after that they had specialized sunglasses to wear for the next few days.

“Izuku…” The greenette shook his head. Immediately after arriving home he had cornered himself in the corner of Shouta’s bedroom. “Please?” “I- I’m okay,” Izuku whispered. “J- just quiet. Can’t- Okay. I- It’s okay…” Shouta huffed. “No, we aren’t doing that here. You are not okay.” Chip whimpered. “I need you to talk to me, Izuku, Chip.” Izuku curled up tighter.

* **knock** * * **knock** * * **knock** *

“Hey, there, little listener,” Hizashi slowly walked in. Shouta saw Izuku still. Everything was so wrong. The confidence from before was completely gone. Izuku couldn’t function properly anymore. Everyone was on eggshells around him. They had to do  _ something _ . Now he was completely blind for a whole day and Izuku wasn’t even trying to hang out with them.

He shifted and sat beside Izuku against the wall. Hizashi sat before them. “I brought something for you. Can you hold out your hands?” Shouta looked down at what his friend was holding: an open notebook and pencil. He narrowed his eyes. ‘ _ He’s blind, _ ’ Shouta mouthed. ‘ _ I know _ ,’ Hizashi mouthed back. Shouta stifled a sigh and nudged Izuku’s arm. “It’s alright. It isn’t anything bad.” Izuku shifted just a bit and held out his hands. Hizashi slipped the objects into them. A few seconds of feeling later Izuku huffed and lifted his head. Shouta could almost make out the scrutinizing glare from beneath the bandages.

“Hey, don’t give me that,” Hizashi smirked. He reached over and took Izuku’s hands, positioning the pencil against the paper. “I am going to design a gown,” he states boldly. “And you are going to draw it. A game! How does that sound?” … “Alrighty then!” Hizashi puts his hands together. “It’s gotta be big cause I’m a loud person. So something big and boisterous like me.” Low and behold, the pencil hit the paper and off Izuku’s hands went.

They need to bring Izuku back. What is the biggest part of Izuku? What was the one thing that screamed ‘ _ Not Midoriya _ ’? It was always fashion. Creating something for himself. Not a dream like heroism Mr. Midoriya wanted him to pursue for the money. It was how he separated himself from the Midoriya’s. It was  _ Izuku _ .

It is what they needed to reinstill in him.

It wasn’t pretty by any means but Izuku was engaged and ever so slightly, Shouta saw the corners of his mouth begin to turn up. Until they fell again. Hizashi’s bizarre design fell from his lips when the bandages began to get wet and Izuku let out a quiet sob out of nowhere. Hizashi’s arms flailed. ‘ _ What did I do?! _ ’ Shouta shook his head. He reached over and brought the boy into a hug. “Izuku, what’s wrong?” he asks softly.

Izuku cries hard, pencil and notebook falling from his hands in favor of latching onto the man. “I can’t see it… I can’t see it. I can’t see it. I can’t see it! I- Shouta, I can’t-” He ducked his head. “I’m scared!” Every living thing in the house jumped at the sudden yell from the boy. “I can’t do this anymore!” He’d broken. Izuku had pent up so much and now it was all coming out. “I- I- I don’t understand what went wrong! I don’t get it! I don’t know what to do. Everything hurts. It hurts to think, to speak, to sleep, to be awake. It hurts to  _ live _ ! I don’t know what I am supposed to do anymore!” Izuku pulled away, hands digging into and pulling at his hair. “I don’t know! It’s not-” Izuku’s head shot up.

“ **IT’S NOT OKAY ANYMORE!** ” he screamed.

Shouta thinks he felt his heart stop for a split second. He didn’t know what to do. He didn’t know how to handle this. Izuku had finally spoken but Shouta wasn’t prepared for it. Neither was Hizashi. Neither was Nemuri. Neither was-

“Well of course it isn’t,” Mom huffed, walking into the room. “It wasn’t ever ‘okay’, Izuku.” She sat in front of them. Nemuri soon joined. “Not a single thing that happened in your life was okay.” Izuku flinched. “Not the four years before you were deemed elementless because those led to misconceptions and lying parents. Not the gaslighting, not the basement, not the starving, not the beating, burning, name changing, presence erasing, blackmailing. Not the rape and not the selling you off to villains.” Izuku sobbed. Chip curled around the boy’s neck. Mom didn’t stop. “You don’t know what to do? Of course you don’t know what to do. You’ve spent your whole life focusing on protecting Mrs. Midoriya and Inha when they weren’t even in danger. Even what you thought you were doing was a lie! It’s only natural that you are lost and confused and hurt and scared. All of this ‘it’s okay’ is also a lie! Boy, you’ve never been told the truth a single time in your life so let me tell you the truth right here and now.”

She reached forward and pulled Izuku’s hands from his hair, holding them firmly in her own.

“He is the cold, hard truth.  **It’s not okay** . It never has been. Right now, you are at an all time low. Don’t try and deny it. You and Chip, you’ve been run over by the world time and time again and it was wrong of the world to ignore your obvious suffering. You have every right to be spiteful and hateful. You have every right to be scared and, honestly? I would be more afraid if you weren’t.” She sighs sadly. Mom rubs her thumbs in circles on the back of Izuku’s hands.

“It hurts, doesn’t it?” she asks much softer. “You feel as though everything has been stripped from you. You don’t feel like yourself anymore, do you?” Izuku lowers his head, shoulders shaking. Chip’s ears droop. They are still crying but they aren’t having a panic attack or anything. Without their sight, they are forced to listen and they are just so, so defeated at her words because everything she says is true.

“ **That is okay.** ” Shouta flinches.  _ Can she say that? _ Mom continues. “It is okay because who you were in that basement is not who you truly are. It is okay because once you acknowledge that what happened wasn’t okay you can move on to what is okay. It’s okay because now you aren’t in that basement, you aren’t under Mr. Midoriya’s foot, and you aren’t ever going to return there again. It’s okay because now,” she shakes his hands a little, “now Izuku and Chip can start becoming Izuku and Chip.” They ‘look’ up at her, in her general direction. “You are lost right now. You don’t know what to do anymore now that everything is over but you know what you want to do, right?”

Mom lets go of his hands and picks up the notebook and pencil. She presses them against his hands until Izuku takes them.

“Let’s create,” she presses the pencil to the paper, “Izuku and Chip. It is going to be messy. Gosh, this is a dress? You really can’t see with those on can you?” Izuku huffs. “That’s okay too. We don’t expect you to suddenly be perfectly fine. When we take those bandages off tomorrow, a new journey will begin. The lines on your paper will become straighter the harder you work and oh boy will it be hard work. You are going to want to cry and scream and lash out. You  _ will _ cry and scream and lash out. You are broken. The sooner you accept that the sooner you can work towards putting you two back together. For now, let’s just draw,” she guides the pencil around the paper, “and make something completely different. When those bandages come off we are going to create Izuku and Chip and Izuku and Chip are going to be okay.”

The three younger adults stared at her in awe. Izuku’s hand twitched. And then it moved up. And it moved down. And before they knew it, Mom was no longer guiding his hand along the paper, it was just going. The tears were still falling. Izuku and Chip sobbed and cried but the pencil didn’t stop. It didn’t stop until it slowed and Izuku’s hand went limp. He and Chip had passed out.

“For the record,” Hizashi murmured, “that was amazing.” Mom chuckled. “You made a pretty good opening. I’ve lived a couple decades longer than you youngins. I had a pretty good inkling that Izuku wasn’t going to hold up much longer. I’ve had experience in this field.” She ruffles Shouta’s hair. He blushes a bit.  _ When Dad and Shirakumo died, she means. _ “When he tried to draw again without being able to see the paper, it was like not being able to see himself anymore. Izuku made himself around creating something different than ‘Midoriya.’ It was the perfect opportunity for him to let it out.” She leaned forward and took the sleeping boy and his Eevee into her arms. Mom stood. “Hours upon hours, days, weeks, months,  _ years _ go into practice and training and into creating a masterpiece.” She lays them gently down on Shouta’s bed, taking Chip from Izuku’s neck and settling him on the greenette’s chest before covering them. “Days, weeks, months, years. They are going to need help. A simple inspirational speech won’t magically make them all better.” Mom looks over her shoulder at them. “What do you say? Are you willing to put in the work?”

Shouta stands, stretching his arms over his head. “Who do you think you are talking to?” He smirks. “I’m willing to put in a lifetime.” Hizashi and Nemuri stand. “Count me in.” “Yeeeaaah!”

Shouta smiles down at his son.  _ Now then. I think it’s time that we finally put a smile back on your face. _

____________________________

“Careful!” Kayama worries

Izuku’s hands shake Mrs. Aizawa unwraps the bandages from around his head. “Oh hush! I know what I am doing!” Shouta is unwrapping Chip’s. They are in the living room. He feels the light slowly begin to penetrate through his eyelids as the wrappings become fewer. The slip completely off and replacing them slid on a pair of sunglasses. Mrs. Aizawa steps back. “Alright, open your eyes.” Izuku wants to. He does. He can’t. He’s scared. He’s scared to open his eyes only to find out that everything was a lie. That he is still in that basement and that whatever pervert Mr. Midoriya chose first to take advantage of him is about to come down. “Hey, kid,” Shouta whispers. He hears the man’s clothes rustle. He’s crouching before him. “It’s going to be alright. I’m here. When you open your eyes I am going to be right here.”

Izuku nods shakily.  _ Shouta’s here. Shouta’s okay. It’s okay. Just open your eyes! Everything is real! Everything is OkAy! _

Chip’s tail wacks his back gently. “Vee…” his voice sounds watery. Izuku takes a deep breath and slowly opens his eyes. It’s a bit darker through the sunglasses but WOW. It is a bit disorienting at first. The room, the colors, the people- The people! Izuku’s eyes meet black ones. They belong to a man with scraggly black hair and a stubble wearing a black t-shirt and bright pink sweats. They belong to-

“ **Dad…?** ”

Shouta sharply inhales. “Yeah, it’s me.” Chip squeals jumping into the man’s arms. Izuku pitches forward after him, wrapping his arms around Shouta’s neck. “Dad!” Tears stream from his eyes. One hand holding Chip, the other one coming around to hug Izuku, Shouta cries as well.  _ It’s real! It’s okay! It’s okay! _ “C- c- can I call you that…?” Izuku asks hesitantly. The raven-haired man huffs. “Of course you can. What else would you call your Dad?” Izuku relaxes in his father’s hold.

Years upon years he has been waiting for this. Longing for this. Now it’s so hard to believe it but right now he is in his true father’s arms and all he can do is cry.

When he finally collects himself, it is like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Izuku and Chip look around the room. They look between Sh- Dad and Mrs. Aizawa and- “Woah…” Dad sighs, dragging a hand across his face. She whaps her son upside his head. “You should feel blessed to look like me!”  _ They look a lot more alike than I thought they would.  _ Izuku stifles a snicker. He looks over at a tall blonde-haired man with his hair in a messy bun. He’s got a small mustache too. “Y- Yamada?” Izuku asks hesitantly. The man beams. “Yup! That’s me, little listeners!” Izuku blinks. “You wear glasses?” Yamada snorts. “That’s right!”

“Hey, hey! Me too!” He and Chip look over at- “Kayama?” A woman with very dark purple hair spiked downwards with rectangular red-framed glasses waved. “Heya!” Izuku looks down at his hands. “Wow…” He truly has no words. Dad pats his shoulder. “Why don’t you go take a bath alright? Mom put an extra set of clothes for you on my bed. We have a long day today.”

Izuku and Chip look up. “What are we doing?” No one replied. Izuku huffed and stood. “Okay…?” He stood. “Let’s go, Chip.”

Izuku felt a bit weird. It was strange being able to see again. After yesterday’s conversation with Mrs. Aizawa, he was feeling a bit better. He still felt all sorts of weird though. Izuku took in all of the features of the house. What started as sliding his hand on the wall to touch all of the ‘okay’’s in the basement ended up becoming a habit to guide himself so he still did it but now it was just in awe of the beauty of sight. He found his clothes and took them to the guest bathroom. Izuku turned around and for the first time in forever truly saw himself in the mirror. It was cold water had been poured down his back.

He stumbled back, tripping on the bathtub wall and falling into it with a * **BAM** *. The soap bottles clattered into it loudly but it was all dull in his ears. Footsteps pounded down the hall. Chip wailed nudging his arm but it didn’t register. All that registered was what he saw in the mirror. What Mr. Midoriya turned him into. 

The bathroom door slammed open. His eyes were transfixed on the mirror above, tears slowly rolling down his cheeks. He couldn’t breathe. He did  _ want _ to breathe. Hands picked him up under his arms and drew him from the bathtub. “Shh…” a calming voice hushed. He was carried from the bathroom. Izuku had to hide his face in the person’s shoulder as they passed the mirror again. They sat on the couch, the greenette being shifted to a cradled position but his arms stayed firmly wrapped around the man’s neck. “I’m sorry,” the man whispered. “I forgot. That must have been a shock for you.”

“What did he do to me?!” Izuku wailed. It broke the other residents’ hearts. “It’s ugly!” he screeched. “It’s not me anymore!” The man held him tighter. “Izuku-” “I’m not even Izuku anymore! Izuku’s not okay! Midoriya is not okay! Mikumo is not okay! Akatani is not okay! Izuku is not okay! What is okay?!” 

A woman sat beside them and drew Izuku from the man’s arms. “You are right,” she stated. “I said it yesterday, I will say it again. It is not okay.” She sat him down on her lap and pulled him close to where his back was leaning against her chest. “It is not fair that you have to look in the mirror and not recognize yourself anymore. It’s not okay that he stripped that away from you. But don’t go forgetting the conversation we had yesterday because that will feed into today. You asked what we are doing? We are going out and fixing what he destroyed.”

Izuku shakes his head. “I don’t… we can’t…”

“We can’t?” she questioned. “We haven’t even tried! You can’t give up just yet!” She rested her chin on his green curls. “Not yet. He hasn’t won. We are going to create you, remember?” Izuku glares at the ground. “Please, just give it time. You’ve spent eleven years having yourself taken from you. Let’s spend the next lifetime getting it back. It all starts with the first step, remember? It’s not okay right now so let’s make it okay.” 

Izuku looks up at her. Mrs. Aizawa. She’s a very wise woman. 

Nevertheless, Izuku still looks back down. “I don’t… want to see me right now…” Dad stood up. “That’s fine. I’ll go cover the mirror.” When Izuku enters the bathroom again, a towel is hanging over the mirror. He turns his head away. He hates it. He hates what Mr. Midoriya did to him. But what he hates the most is that he did it all under a lie. Izuku gave up everything thinking he was protecting them. It was a LIE. Dad ruffles his hair. “It’ll be fine. You get washed, alright?” Izuku nods. The man turns to leave.

“Ah!” Izuku reaches out and grabs the back of Dad’s shirt. “Izuku?” He blushes. “I um…” Izuku gestures to the bath. “I don’t know how… to turn it on…” Dad takes a sharp breath. “Izuku, when was the last time you took an actual bath? Like, not just a washcloth and a sink?” He has to think for a bit. “Was it… No… I think I still had them before the basement. Maybe five? That doesn’t feel right…” Dad holds up a hand. “Stop.” He has to take a deep breath. Dad sighs loudly. “I’ll explain it so listen up.”

And he does. It’s a tad embarrassing having to have a bath explained to you at fifteen years old. Dad teaches him how to plug and unplug the tub, which way to turn the knob for cold water and which for warm. He explains the difference between shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. He shows Izuku and Chip what a loofa is. He shows them how to switch from the bathtub faucet to the showerhead but Izuku won’t be using the showerhead today to protect his eyes. By the end of it, Izuku feels as though a whole new world was introduced to him. 

“You got it?” Dad asks. He nods bashfully. “Th- thanks…” When Dad leaves, Izuku immediately fills up the bath with WARM water. Do you know how amazing it feels to just soak in warm water? Do you know how amazing warm water is in general? It’s safe to say that he and Chip took their time.

____________________________

“Woah! You look pissed!” Hizashi held up his hands. Shouta stormed into the living room. “ _ I am _ ,” he growled. He rifled through the kitchen before starting a pot of coffee. “They didn’t know how to freaking take a bath. They hadn’t taken once since they were either five or four years old. It’s always been just a hand towel, cold water from a sink, and a bar of soap because that screw up of a father didn’t permit anything else.” Shouta flops down on the couch, running a hand through his hair. “He didn’t even know what shampoo was! It’s so-”

“Messed up?” Nemuri provides. “Very.”

Shouta was stunned when he heard it. Sure, he knew Izuku and Chip didn’t have warm water before but he never thought that they wouldn’t have access to at least a shower. “Dang it,” Shouta curses. “There’s just so much wrong! They weren’t even treated like living beings!”

“Well no use complaining about it now,” Mom huffs. “There is going to be a lot we need to teach him but they are fast learners.” They all nod. Hizashi furrowed his eyebrows. “But can someone explain to me why they do that whole ‘circling the table’ thing before going to the bathroom?”

Shouta blinks. He looks down at the coffee table. “Yeah, I’ve been wondering about that for a bit,” Nemuri admits. Shouta has too. Every time Izuku or Chip needed to use the bathroom they would, depending on where they were in the house, walk around the coffee table before going back down the hall and to the bathroom. Even if he is in Shouta’s room he will completely leave the room when Shouta’s room has a bathroom only to walk down the hall, around the coffee table in the living room, and back into the hall just to use the bathroom. 

“He does something similar when entering the kitchen, I’ve noticed,” Mom muses. “He just circles it in the opposite direction.” Shouta furrows his eyebrows. “I’m going to do it.”

“Do what?”

“Because I have tried to before,” Shouta says. “He couldn’t see me do it but I tried the ‘walking around the table’ thing. Now that they can, I’m going to try it again to see their reaction.”

It takes around an hour and a half for the bathroom door to open again. That’s fine. Izuku and Chip look so relaxed. “Did you like it?” Nemuri giggles. Izuku hummed, circling around the coffee table and sitting on the couch. “It was nice…” Shouta chuckles. “Alright. I am going to go use the bathroom and then we can head off.” He stands, makes sure Izuku and Chip watch him circle the table once, and then heads for the hallway. He stops when a shiver goes down his back. Shouta looks over his shoulder.

Izuku and Chip are staring at him with this dead-fish look in their eyes. Everyone else notices it too. The boy’s right arm began to twitch a little. “Izuku, lookie here!” Nemuri whips out her phone a bit too eagerly. The boy and his Eevee take a shaky breath. They blink and the look is gone and they turn to look at what she pulled out.

Shouta skedaddled the hell out of there.

_ Note to self, don’t do the ‘walk around the table’ thing. _

____________________________

Izuku felt like he was dying. There are so many people walking around in Lumiose City on the weekend! So many adults. So many liars! Chip was trotting in between Liepard and Umbreon but Izuku could tell he was tense too. They didn’t like this at all.

“Alrighty then!” Yamada took the lead as they entered a shopping strip. “I called dibs on the wardrobe so come on, little listeners!” Izuku scowled. Dad nudged him forward. “He’s fine. You know this already.” Izuku and Chip met eyes for a second before they hesitantly fell in line beside the voice hero. “Wh- what do you mean by ‘wardrobe’?” he questioned.

Yamada gestures to the shopping strip. “There are, like, a thousand clothing stores here. Did Shouta tell you that we will be stopping by your old place to get your old items?” Izuku looked away. Yamada hummed. “Yeah, well, he also said all of your old clothes are fit for a six year old so we ain’t having none of that. But rest assured! Today is an Izuku and Chip day! We are getting you a whole new wardrobe!” The boy and Eevee blanched. He stumbled a bit. “Wh- what?! Y- y- you don’t have to d- do that! It’s okay!”

“Young man,” Mrs. Aizawa said from behind, “it is very much  _ not _ okay that you don’t have clothes. It is not okay that you never got new clothes as you were growing up. Clothing is a necessity. At least clothes that fit are. You are right. We don’t have to do this but we  _ want _ to do this. We want to see you happy, alright?”

The two blushed furiously. Yamada laughed loudly. “First things first. We need to get you some shoes so you don’t have to walk around in those slippers all day.” Izuku flinched when his hand was taken. “Off we go!”

It was weird. They were in and out of the dressing rooms so many times their heads were spinning. Izuku tried to look at only cheap clothes but the adults seemed to know him better than that and immediately got on his case about it. Yamada pouted. “I work three well-paying jobs, Nemuri works two, and Shouta works one with the normal pay of an underground hero. We have the money, listeners! Oh, and did I mention all of the other teachers pitched in?”

Izuku’s eyes widened. “They… did?” the adults smiled at him. “They did.” And so the day of shopping began. It was a day of push and pull on his conscious and anxiety.

_ Is this okay? Is this really okay?! _ Izuku held up a black jean jacket.  _ Are they really going to let me wear these? Is this a joke? Are we going to pick these all out only for them to laugh and put them back? _

\-----

_ ‘We’ll see how long this rebellious phase of yours will hold out before I beat it out of you.’ _

\-----

He shivered. Izuku glanced over at Dad. He put the jacket back and moved on.  _ It’s not worth the risk _ . * **tap** * * **tap** * * **tap** * Izuku turned around only to have the jacket pressed into his chest. Viridian eyes widen. Dad reaches down and straightens the sunglasses on Izuku’s face. “I’m not going to hurt you if you wear this.” He walks away to look at the other clothes. Izuku and Chip stare after him dumbfounded. Yamada raises an eyebrow. “It’s a size too big. Let’s get a smaller one!”

Izuku and Chip were  _ thriving _ . Being back in the clothes they felt comfortable in was amazing. They even went to a pokemon clothing store! Izuku ended up with black combat boots for his choice of footwear. Somewhere along the way, Yamada’s jumpy attitude eased their nerves and made it easier to look at clothes without added apprehension. The man even got Izuku in a few pairs of blue jeans which Izuku found didn’t go too bad with the blacks he had picked out. And guess what? They actually bought it! Izuku strolled down the street in a white t-shirt tucked into some black jeans. He had on a black jean jacket and his black combat boots too. Chip had his own Eevee-tailored black jean jacket too! They had to tie the right sleeve into a knot. Izuku would have to cut off that one and sow it back up. He’d hate for the three-legged Eevee to trip on it. It would be good practice too.

\-----

_ ‘You don’t know what to do anymore now that everything is over but you know what you want to do, right?’ _

\-----

What he wants to do…

“Well then,” Kayama sauntered forward, “I guess it’s my time to shine.” Izuku blinked. “Th- there’s more?” he rolls her eyes. “‘There’s more’?” she mimics. “You bet there is! I’m the one who basically designed Shouta’s house and furniture. I made him go shopping for it with me. Without me, your Dad would only have a thousand sleeping bags.” Izuku snickered before freezing. He  _ laughed _ . Is that okay? Dad pat his shoulder wordlessly.  _ It’s okay… _ Nemuri smiled. “So, yes, there is more. This day isn’t quite over yet. We still have to get the furniture for your room.”

Izuku and Chip looked at each other. His head whipped up. “Isn’t that super expensive?!” Everyone deadpanned. “We are having this conversation again?” Yamada asked. Izuku stared at the ground. His feet came to a halt. “Wh- why…? I don’t understand why you are all being so nice? I’m not worth all of this…”

“You’re right,” Dad stated. “You and Chip are worth so much more than all of this.” He walked up to Izuku and placed his hand on the greenette’s head. “You may not see it now, you way not ever believe us but that does not make my words any less true. It may take a lifetime but we are willing to spend a lifetime erasing those self-deprecating ideas Mr. Midoriya put in your head.” Izuku studied the man’s face. With his working eyes he longed for them to tell him the truth. He expected to find lies and falsehoods but found nothing of the sorts. Dad has always been this way, hasn’t he? Even when they first met he was blunt and brutally honest. Izuku can definitely see who he got that from in his mother. “Do you want to continue?” Dad asks. “Because we are all willing to.” He looks past his father. Kayama, Yamada, Mrs. Aizawa, Umbreon, and Liepard all smile back at him. Izuku can’t help the small smile that settles on his face. “Yes…”

Kayama calls in a delivery truck that basically follows them around. 

They end up going to multiple stores, the adults showing Izuku a patience he never knew adults could have. Though, he still glared at each employee that got too close.

“Come here! Come here!” Yamada waved them over.  _ When did he cross the street? _ They wanted for a break in traffic and crossed over to join the man. He pointed up at a sign that read:  **THE DESIGN ALLEY** . Kayama’s eyes lit up. “Yamada, you’re a genius! Come on, kiddo!” She grabbed his hand and pulled Izuku inside.

Rows upon rows of fabrics and thread. Alley of lace and tulle. Towers of beads and sparkles. There were dress forms and mannequins. There were sewing machines in all different shapes and sizes. Clothing patterns lined the walls.

It. was. AMAZING.

“Well?” Kayama gestured to the store. Izuku’s eye sparkled. “I- You-” She got behind him and put her hands on his back. “Annnnnd… GO!” She gave him a push. Izuku and Chip did not waste time.

“Just where are you thinking I am going to store this?” he hears Dad sigh to Kayama as they follow behind the entranced boy and Eevee. Kayama laughs. “You don’t necessarily need a guest room, do you?” Mrs. Aizawa hums. “I guess I could always sleep in your office until I go back.” He lets out a long sigh. “Just so long as he is happy.”

He didn’t get too much there but Kayama was adamant on him getting a sewing machine and s couple dress forms, the torso’s on a stick type mannequins you see dressmakers put together dresses on. They picked out a few patterns, some thread, some different fabrics and a whole lot of tulle. “Isn’t this cute?” And… some lace and sparkles and rhinestones at Kayama’s request. Izuku beamed down at the fur lining he held in his hands. This day had been so amazing. He almost didn’t want it to end.

“Thank you!” Kayama waved as the delivery driver drove away to drop off everything they had gotten at Dad’s house.

Mrs. Aizawa claps her hands together. “Well now, I’m hungry. Shall we eat out before we hit our next stop?” Izuku took a long, hard blink. “There’s mo-” “If you finish that question I’mma slap you.” He snapped his teeth together with a solid * **click** *.

They went to a simple burger joint. Izuku doesn’t recall ever eating out before. All he got was a burger and some fries and yet it was so much! Even Chip who was eating a bowl of pokechow on the floor next to them was struggling to finish it all.

“Izuku, do you not like it?” Nemuri asked? His head snapped up. “N- no! I do! I do! I really do… I’m really grateful to!” Dad pats his shoulder. “She isn’t going to hit you, kid. We know.” The greenette looked down. “Okay… I just… it’s so much… It sort of hurts to eat.” The adults went silent. Dad cleared his throat. “You haven’t eaten a whole meal since you’ve been at home either, have you? It’s been a long while since you’ve eaten more than a couple of protein bars a day, hasn’t it?” Izuku purses his lips. “We can take it to go,” Mrs. Aizawa speaks up. “We only have two more stops anyway today so it shouldn’t go bad by the time we get home.”

Izuku frowns. “Sorry…” Dad puts his arm around Izuku’s shoulders and pulls the boy to lean against him. “Don’t be, Izuku. It’s not  _ your _ fault.”

He  _ knows _ it isn’t his fault but he still can’t shake the dark feeling that settles over him. Everyone had been saying it all day: ‘It’s normal to have clothes that fit you, Izuku!’, ‘It’s normal to have a desk to work on, Izuku!’, ‘It’s normal for parents to want to buy things for their children, Izuku!’

Warm water, warmth in general, food, light, love, bathtub, shower, not giving yourself stitches, not being beaten daily, not being blackmailed, trusting people, getting angry and being allowed to be angry. It’s all freaking normal! It’s all normal… He hates it.

“Here we are,” Mrs. Aizawa announces. He yawns and looks up. “Someone is tired,” Kayama giggles. “Guess we better get along with it.” It’s a phone store. “Especially with villains gunning for you this is going to be a necessity,” Dad muses. He slips one into Izuku’s hands. It feels so expensive. He still can’t wrap his mind around all of this. They got him a black phone case with white stars all over it. Mrs. Aizawa takes it from his hands and messes with it for a second before sliding it back in. “There we go. Now you have my number.” She opens the contacts list. Dad will have to show him how to use this later.

**Grandma Aizawa**

He looks up at her with sparkling eyes. She smirks. “Me next!”

**YAMADAAAAAAAAAA!!!**

**Kayama ;)**

**Dad**

Izuku feels tears well in his eyes again. “You can’t cry just yet,” Dad pats his back. “One more stop. I think you will really like this one. I will teach you how to use that at home so for now just pocket it.” “Y- yes, Sir.” They make their way down the street once again. The sun had already disappeared behind the buildings and the deep indigo sky sparkled with stars above. “Alright, here we are, last stop.” He is ushered into a store.

It takes a moment for Izuku to realize they just entered a jewelry store. “Um…” Dad lightly taps his right ear. “These are looking a bit bare, don’t you think?” Izuku and Chip stiffen. Dad crouches down, putting one hand on Izuku’s shoulder and the other on Chip’s head. “I know very well you gave yourself those piercings to separate yourself from the Midoriya’s,” he states. “I also know very well that you gave them to yourself when you were struggling mentally, weren’t you?” They lower their eyes. “Yeah, we all know. But those are still a symbol of yourself. You didn’t want to give those up, did you? He forced you to.” Izuku flinched when he felt Kayama touch his hair. “Or this,” she mused. She rifled in her purse and pulled out a small can of hair gel. Using it, she swooped Izuku’s curls and bangs to one side. “It’s not much, but until your hair grows out you can use this,” she closes and slides the can into his hands. Dad nods. “We told you that we are working to create you again. Those were something very special to you. Go choose yourself some earrings and you used to wear chains, right? Go get yourself back.”

Izuku sniffed. Dad reached up under his sunglasses and gently wiped away his tears. “Go on.”

Izuku took his time. He walked along the rows of earrings. “Anything special you are looking for?” A woman behind the display cases asks. His hands shake. “I- I- I-” He couldn’t find the words. “Could he try on a few?” Dad asks. “Of course.” And he does. His hands shake so much as he tries to put them in he almost can’t. Dad takes them from his hands. “May I?”

There is something surreal about the man he claims as father helping him with something so important to him. It helps settle in place that this, here with all of them, all of this is real.

“What do you think?” The lady turns around the mirror for him. Izuku lets out a sob, falling to his knees. He can’t help it. Seeing himself today earlier, seeing how much Mr. Midoriya changed him. Now seeing him now, in the clothes, with his hair swooped, with the earrings, and even a chain around his neck… it just felt right. He hadn’t felt right in so many years. 

“Thank you,” he whispered. “Thank you so much.” Dad knelt down and pulled him close. “You’ve given up everything to protect everyone that you forgot something important,” he said.  “ **You deserve to be happy too, Izuku.** ” Izuku and Chip could only cry harder.

“We’ll take these,” Mrs. Aizawa told the lady. Chip had gotten a couple of pairs too.

Dad helped him up. “You alright?” Izuku shook his head. “ **No** ,” he states. “I’m not even okay… B- but somehow…” Izuku smiled brightly up at his father. “Somehow I know I will be.”

____________________________

Shouta closed his room door quietly. Izuku and Chip had practically passed out after the long day. He entered the kitchen and took in all of the boxes with a sigh that were filtering in from the living room. They would have to put everything together tomorrow.

“You look exhausted,” Mom chuckled. Hizashi and Nemuri had already passed out in the living room. She nodded her head to the backyard and passed him a cup of coffee. The two Aizawa’s stood in the cold night’s air. Fall had finally settled upon the Kalos region.

“I want you to take caution, Shouta,” Mom started. “Don’t go thinking it will be all peachy sweet after today. The high will come to an end and everything will settle in about what happened to Izuku. He’s not going to be able to smile like today forever.” Shouta watches the steam rise from his cup. “I know.” He tightens his grip. “I know that. I just wish I could preserve his smile a little longer. I don’t know how to handle his breakdowns. I don’t think I’m ready for it when he falls apart again because I know that he will.” Shouta frowns. “Am I really the best father for him? I think that a lot. Izuku and Chip, I know they aren’t exactly the most stable people on the planet. I’ve never raised a kid before. Starting with them, I don’t know if I will be a good fit. That’s not to say I don’t want to! I do! I love Izuku and Chip like my own children…”

Mom pats his shoulder. “I know you do. If you didn’t then you wouldn’t be questioning this. You know, I used to think the same exact thing about you.” He looks over at her. She nods. “Yup. I used to question if I was doing this whole parenting thing correctly. We worry because we love them. Shouta, I think that you are the  _ only _ one who could be his father. That boy and that Eevee need you, Shouta. They would not have told anyone else about what was happening. Only because they thought of you as someone they can trust and honestly care about did they let you help them. It’s going to be a bumpy road for sure. You are going to want to cry almost as much as they will. But I know you can do it.”

Shouta smiles down at his coffee. “Thanks, Mom. Are you sure you can’t stay longer?” She shakes her head. “I’ll be back for the holidays.” Shouta looks up at the sky.

_ Can I really do this? _

As he enters his room for the night and silently slips in beside Izuku and Chip. he looks at his son and Eevee and suddenly the worry is replaced with so much love it makes his heart want to burst. Shouta doesn’t know if he is the best father for the two but he does know that he will try his best because these two are his world. He pulls them close to him.

_ Can I do this? Yes. I think I can. _

And then Izuku screamed.


	19. Aizawa Shouta Is Okay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku's weak before returning back to school.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back from the Hiatus! How is everyone? How was y'all's Thankgivings? I hope they went well!

“Sorry…”

“Kid, stop apologizing.”

Izuku flinched. Everyone was dead tired the next morning. He didn’t mean to scream in his sleep. It’s just the flames that seem to crackle against this skin every time he closes his eyes and the low laugh of Mr. Midoriya seems to follow him to his dreams and with every move he makes he feels like he is  _ still there _ .

Three of the other four humans in this house are professionals heroes each with their own set of PTSD so him crying out in the dark of night sent all of them and their hoard of hero pokemon into a frenzy and it sent Mrs. Aizawa, the only non-hero, non-traumatized being there, on a multiple hour mission to get everyone to calm the heck down.

He couldn’t meet their eyes. He was just waiting for the backlash on the loveseat but Yamada was sleeping with his face to the table, Kayama was in the bathroom getting ready for the day, Mrs. Aizawa was packing up her own belongings fixing to leave in the morning, and Dad was just slurping on a jelly packet on the couch grading papers. Nothing was happening.

Dad let out a sigh, eliciting another flinch from Izuku and Chip. The man put the papers to the side. “You two, come here.”  _ Here it comes… _ Izuku held Chip close to his chest as he crossed the living room. Dad pat the couch beside him. Izuku didn’t want to sit down. He was scared. He knows how this goes by now. Nevertheless, he did because it is always worse to not. He squeezed his viridian eyes shut tightly.

* **thump** *

Something landed on his shoulder. Daring to dare, Izuku peaked one eye open and looked over. Dad had… fallen asleep on his shoulder…? “HA!” he jumped at Yamada’s laugh. “That’s the Shouta-style punishment for you. He can sleep for days, kid!” Izuku blinked. “He’s not g- going to-”

“No,” Izuku jumped at Dad’s voice. “No the hell I am not going to hit you.” He leaned up and leveled the boy with a stare. “You had a nightmare. I’d be a pretty sucky Dad if I hit you for that. Now hush up and let me sleep.” And he put his head back down and fell asleep again.

Izuku and Chip looked at each other.  _ What? _ They are so confused.

But also tired because they were, in fact, up since midnight after their nightmare because no way in hell were they sleeping again after that. Izuku was stuck with Dad on his shoulder and Chip wasn’t leaving him so he naturally just leaned back against the couch cushions and closed his eyes. Absol came over and joined them, curling up on the couch next to him. He didn’t mean to fall asleep but his eyes drooped and soon enough Izuku had drifted off into dreamland.

____________________________

Shouta heard the gentle breathing of his son after a few minutes so he opened his eyes and sat up.  _ There we go. _ Mom raised an eyebrow at him as she exited the hall. He simply shrugged. He needed to get Izuku to sleep somehow. Today they were putting together the boy’s room. It was going to be a long day. So would tomorrow and oh how they all dreaded tomorrow because tomorrow they were going to Vaniville Town to retrieve Izuku’s belongings.

Shouta had suggested Izuku stay home but the boy wanted to come see for himself with working eyes that it was gone. Well, ‘gone.’ The roof had collapsed and some of the interior walls were down but aside from that, a charred building still stood.

Mom wouldn’t be coming with them either. She had a doctor’s appointment in her town, Dendemille Town, in two days.

Shouta supposes she can’t stay forever. He still worries he might not be able to handle Izuku’s breakdowns like she does. At some point he will have to learn to. This would be a learning experience for him and Izuku, it would seem. Not only was Mom leaving, Hizashi and Nemuri would be going back to their respective lodgings. They both lived in Lumiose City, of course. He wonders how Izuku will react to it all.

He wonders a lot about Izuku but Shouta thinks he will learn a lot tomorrow. Seeing how Izuku reacts to certain things in his old home (*cough cough* torture dungeon) will tell Shouta how he needs to act accordingly so he doesn’t make the same mistakes.

____________________________

After his little night attack, the day ran pretty smoothly, Izuku thinks. He got to see what ‘his room’ looks like for the first time.

Izuku wonders how long it will last. He is pretty sure this house doesn’t have a basement.  _ Right? _ He is too scared to ask. Izuku doesn’t remember much of his room before it became Inha’s room and down in the basement he had his belongings from it a few months before they all eventually disappeared, Mr. Midoriya taking them little by little during that time. It’s weird to have  _ walls _ again. And a door. And a whole lot of other things. It was certainly much bigger than his  _ bedroom _ in the basement.

They already had a bed but Izuku was allowed to pick out the bedding which he chose to be a galaxy themed one. Izuku found that he greatly enjoyed being able to see the stars at night again. As such, Kayama suggested to get stick-on stars that they put on his ceiling and at night they would glow. He had a bedside table with a lamp and an alarm clock that Dad promised to teach him how to use. He had a desk for school work and a dresser. Izuku felt weird putting his clothes in the dresser and the closet. He felt weird putting his notebooks and books on the shelves of the desk. He was so used to having them perfectly lined up to create the outlines of his  _ walls _ . In the guest bedroom, despite his protests, the adults assured him that it was fine for him to have a sewing room in there.

“I have an office for my work,” Dad stated, “so you can have one for your work too.”

They were all so  _ nice _ . 

By the end of the day, they were all exhausted. Yamada made a joke about him putting on muscles for all their work. Before he knew it, it was time for bed.

* **tap** * * **tap** * * **tap** * went his foot against the floor and * **knock** * * **knock** * * **knock** * when his fist against the door of his bedroom. “What are you doing?” Dad asked. Izuku furrowed his eyebrows. “It made a sound.” The ears of the others perked up at that. Dad narrowed his eyes. “Yes…? Should it not? When you knock on it?” Izuku hums. “I don’t know.” He opens the door and walks in. Dad follows him in. “Are you alright?”

Instead of answering, Izuku closes the door and- “It makes a sound,” he states again. “Alright…” Dad gently guides him and Chip away front the door and to the bed. “We can discuss that later. Do you want to sleep in here tonight, Izuku, Chip? This is your room after all.”

Izuku jumped, head shooting up.  _ Right…  _ Somehow it hurt to think that.  _ Dad needs his room back. It’s better if I sleep here… _ He tries his best to smile up at his father. “I’ll sleep here,” he says.” Dad seems a bit contemplative. “Alright. Come get me if you need anything. Yamada, Grandma, and Nemuri are here too.” He nods. “O- okay.” Dad knelt down and, much to Izuku’s surprise, wrapped his arms around the boy.

“Tomorrow,” Izuku stiffened, “will be fine. If at any point you feel like you don’t want to be there you can tell us. We won’t force you to do this.”  _ Dad…  _ Izuku lifted his arms shakily and returned the hug. “Okay…”

Dad pet Chip and left the room. Izuku watched the door close with wide eyes.

\-----

_ ‘Don’t leave me down here! Please! Daddy! Let me out! DaDdy!!!’ _

_ … _

_ ‘Don’t leave me…’ _

\-----

Izuku fell to his knees. Chip whimpered. The two looked around their room. They had been given so much and yet it felt so painfully tight. Like at any moment they would turn around just as fast as Mr. Midoriya did. A single sentence is all it took for his love to turn to hate.

\-----

_ ‘I’m sorry, Mr. and Mrs. Midoriya, your son has no elemental power.’ _

\-----

What would it take for these kind people to do the same? It’s better not to get used to it. It’s better… It will be okay. He just has to stay put like always. Obey like always. So long as he doesn’t do anything wrong.

Izuku and Chip crawled over to the desk and pushed the chair back. “Come here, Chip,” he whispers. Izuku curls up under it, pulling Chip close to his chest. He pulls the chair up as much as he could to hide them. He left the lights on. He doesn’t think he could handle it if the lights were off. Looking to the side, the wall the desk was against was blank. Not long after he began painting the basement walls with his blood did he stop being able to see his art but he remembers it quite well. His hands sliding against each and every ‘Okay.’ He remembers the ‘Okay’ he had in his line of sight right where he would see it when he opened his eyes every morning. These bare walls…

It felt like something was missing.

____________________________

* **knock** * * **knock** * * **knock** *

“Izuku?” Shouta knocked on the boy’s door. “Chip?” It was morning. More specifically, it was almost noon and no one had heard anything from either of them. “Are you two alright?” * **knock** * * **knock** * * **knock** * He heard a quiet * **thud** *. Shouta furrowed his eyebrows and decided to take a risk and open the door a bit. He peeked his head in. “Izuku?”

The room was empty. The lights were on. The bed hadn’t been touched. At first, Shouta thought the worst. Then the desk chair slid back and a bob of green poked out from it. He blinked. “What are you doing?” He watched Chip crawl out from under the desk, soon followed by Izuku. “Sleeping,” the boy replied, standing and pushing the chair back in. Shouta’s mood instantly dropped. “You know you have a bed, right?”

Izuku didn’t respond.

“Kid…” Skeptical green eye flickered to him. It hurt more when Izuku did it now that the boy actually knew where to place his eyes. The raven-haired man took a deep breath. Today is going to be a rough day. Mom is going home, they are visiting Vaniville, and depending on how Izuku and Chip react to the Houndoom being held at UA when they visit, well, it could get worse. Right now, Izuku is probably thinking of quite a few things that can go wrong. Shouta will have to press these matters later. 

“Let’s go say bye to Grandma,” he said. Shouta had begun calling Mom that around Izuku so he would start relating that title to her. “She has to go back to Dendemille Town.”

He couldn’t read Izuku and Chip today. They were about as unreadable and reserved as they were when he first met them.  _ Something  _ happened last night. That or they were anticipating the worst today.

Mom gave them each a tight hug. “I will be back in the holidays, alright?” she promised. Viridian eyes directed themselves away. She huffed. “And you  _ will _ be here by then too.” Ah, that elicited a reaction from the boy and Eevee. Shouta swallowed a sigh. That’s probably why they didn’t use the bed either. They are waiting for it to get taken away.  _ Well then, I guess I will just have to show them that I don’t plan on kicking them out any time soon. _ She pats them on the heads. “Love you two.” Izuku’s arm instantly twitched. Shouta’s eyes narrowed. So did Hizashi’s and Nemuri’s. Mom tried her best not to react.

_ That word caused a misfire in Izuku’s brain. That’s a bit worrying. When was the last time they had been told that? _

Shouta didn’t like to think about such things but he knew it would need to be addressed soon. For it to cause such a visible reaction… Izuku’s and Chip’s eyes darkened a bit but they stayed silent. They had been oddly silent all day. Mom stood and gave each of the adults a hug. “Well, I’m off. Tell me how it goes.” And with that, she leaves. He sees how white Izuku’s curled fists are.

_ Today is going to be a really rough day. _

So Shouta’s a bit worried. Izuku and Chip really aren’t saying anything. An hour and a half into the drive to Vaniville Town and all they have done is stare out of the window and occasionally glance over at Shouta only to immediately look away when he notices. They are waiting for him to leave them there, which he won’t. He is waiting for them to break down, which he  _ hopes _ they won’t. Hizashi is trying to crack a joke, Nemuri is in the middle of pulling up their favorite bridal show, and  _ nothing  _ is happening because the tense air that fills the car is almost suffocating. Soon enough, they pull up to the house, or what is left of it.

There is a bunch of yellow caution tape around it and a businessman waiting outside for them.

“Izu-” The boy and his Eevee open the door and get out. He lets out a heavy sigh.  _ Please let this not go completely horribly. Please? _ The adults get out after. The businessman walks up. “Ah, you must be Midoriya-” hand twitch “- and Aizawa, correct? I am Mr. Iwasaki.” Shouta nods. “We are. Are you here to talk about what to do with the salvageable items?” Mr. Iwasaki nods. “I am. Seeing as Midoriya here-” another “- is the only member we can ask, his sister being too young, we need his confirmation-”

“ **Sell it all** ,” Izuku hisses. 

Mr. Iwasaki takes a step back. “W- wouldn’t you like to take a look inside f- first?” Shouta puts a hand on Izuku’s shoulder. “Breathe,” he whispers. But Izuku and Chip aren’t listening. It’s been a good amount of time since Izuku’s last seizure. Shouta prays it won’t be today. Izuku meets eyes with Mr. Iwasaki. “I will take a look but after that, anything left can be sold,” Shouta can tell he is trying his best to keep calm.

Maybe it isn’t that Izuku is necessarily avoiding them, just that he is forcing himself to keep a level head and it comes off this way.

“O- Of course. Please, take your time,” Mr. Iwasaki gestures to the house. For the first time, Izuku hesitates. “You don’t have to, you know?” Shouta urges. He really doesn’t want Izuku going back in. But the green-haired boy does only he looks over his shoulder at them and says: “Only Dad.” A beat. “Please.”

Ah, manners, young man.

Hizashi gave a thumbs up. “Sure thing, little listener!” Izuku nodded. He looked sad, almost. And so, Shouta followed the boy in. It was eerie almost, walking through the rubble. He knows the boy and Eevee think so too. Ash kicks up, staining their shoes. He coughs a bit but it doesn’t seem to affect the two. It’s so, so quiet. And then his ears pick it up: the small whispers.

“ _ It’s okay. It’s okay. It’s okay. _ ”

They filter into the air. Shouta can almost see the web of lies that held this place together, the words and lies ingrained into the walls. He glances down at a picture frame that had fallen to the floor in fire. The edges of the paper are burned but he can still make out the three happy people in it. The  _ three _ . Midoriya Izuku had been a forgotten person in these walls.

Izuku comes to a halt at the entrance to the closet. The door that had broken and fallen on Shouta lay on the floor. It creaks ominously underfoot. The door to the basement lies open, invitingly so.

“ _ Ak~a~ta~ni, _ ” Izuku sing-songs. It sends a shiver down Shouta’s spine. It’s as though the boy is calling upon the other to replace him. “I-zu-ku,” Shouta says out loud, pronouncing the syllables. “It’s ‘Izuku.’” The greenette hums. “I wonder about that.” At least he is listening to some degree. Finally, with a shaky breath, Izuku takes the first step down.

“It’s strange walking down these stairs,” the boy muses.

“What do you mean?”

“We are usually thrown down,” he states nonchalantly. “Vee,” Chip confirms.

Shouta bites his tongue. “Ah.”

Shouta pulls out his phone and turns on the flashlight to see. Oh, how sick he feels as he takes in the smell of blood and smoke again. Izuku’s hand glides around the wall touching each and every ‘Okay’ painted there. Shouta’s stomach churns. Izuku’s blood is all over the walls. It screams of the underlying insanity that has been well-masked by the boy. Izuku’s hand slips from the wall as he makes his way to the far left corner. There is a small mattress, worn over time, fit for a toddler in the corner. The folded clothes go in a straight line as well as the books and notebooks, meeting at a point with a small gap in between almost as if to make an entrance. Izuku and Chip stop outside of it. The boy’s fist comes up and mimics the movements of knocking on a door. Only, it makes a sound?

* **tap** * * **tap** * * **tap** *

Shouta’s eyes fall to Izuku’s foot. The boy reaches forward and acts as though he is turning door knob and pushes as though-

_ Ah… _ Shouta’s hand flies to his mouth to stop himself from gagging.

\-----

_ ‘It made a sound.’ _

_ ‘Yes…? Should it not? When you knock on it?’ _

_ ‘I don’t know.’ _

\-----

_ Izuku and Chip…  _ He can’t process what pushed the boy to do that but it is obvious that it isn’t the first time, not when he tried it at home. 

\-----

_ ‘That boy isn’t stable, Shouta.’ _

\-----

He mentally curses.

_ Oh? You don’t say?! _

Izuku kneels by the smokey clothes. His hands shake as he picks up a t-shirt. It’s ridden with holes, too small to even be considered for his age. He sighs. “I had hoped, too.” Instead, he turns to the other ‘ _ wall _ ’ and picks a notebook. Shouta leans over. His heart drops. It’s a sketchbook. Well, half of one. The other half of it is burned completely off, not a trace to be found.

“ _ It’s okay… It’s okay… It’s okay… _ ”

Izuku holds it up to him. It hurts Shouta’s heart to see Izuku cling to it enough to ask to take it with them. They also get the other notebooks there. He brushes past Shouta and exits the ‘room.’ Shouta looks down at Chip and Chip  _ knows _ it’s not right. The Eevee looks so, so sad as he watches his trainer act as though this is all normal. Shouta silently followed. He was too busy trying to not throw up to say anything. Izuku walked behind the workout equipment- stained with blood -and entered the bathroom. Much to his dismay, there truly wasn’t any bath or shower. Shouta’s eyes looked up to the mirror and his heart almost stopped when his eyes met that  _ dang _ word again. The blood rolled down the mirror before trying in it’s dripping state. He looked over at Izuku and the boy was  _ smiling _ at it.

As if he remembered that Shouta was there, Izuku jolted and looked over at him. Shouta took an exaggerated breath. “Deep breath.” The greenette nodded, doing the same.  _ Right, Izuku wanted me here for a reason. He knows he isn’t stable. This isn’t anything new. It is just more pronounced right now. Get it together, Shouta. _

Izuku crouched down and opened the cabinets. There was a row of just boxes of protein bars. In front of it was a couple of plastic bowls and cups. To the right was all of Izuku’s toiletries which happened to be only a toothbrush, worn to a nub, an almost empty tube of toothpaste, a half a bar of soap, and a washcloth with a hole in it. Izuku reached in and picked up the bowls and cups. He handed them up to Shouta. “We have real ones at home,” the man states. Izuku furrows his eyebrows. “I know but…” His fingers twitch a bit. Shouta feels the skeptical gaze travel his body. He swallows a sigh.  _ Izuku is preparing for me to trap him like Mr. Midoriya did.  _ Shouta shakes his head. “We can’t have too many, Izuku. I’m not going to lock you up anywhere so let’s just leave these here.” The boy doesn’t believe him, he knows this. He knows it will be a while until Izuku does fully believe him but until then, Shouta will lay down the law.

The law being: Do the exact opposite of whatever the hell Mr. Midoriya did to this kid.

Still, Izuku passed up a box of protein bars. Shouta scrunched his nose. “These smell old.” Izuku shrugged. “They are edible.” Shouta deadpans. “Nope.” He sets them on the counter along with the cups. Izuku sighs and stands, closing the cabinets. He leaves the bathroom. “What about your toiletries?” Shouta asks.

Izuku and Chip both freeze. The greenette looks over his shoulder. “Those are in the bathroom,” he states. Shouta furrows his eyebrows. “Weren’t we just in the bath...room…?” Izuku’s face went completely blank. “No. We were in the kitchen.” He didn’t want to ask but Shouta had to know. “I am pretty sure that was-”

“ **The. Kitchen.** ”

Shouta’s teeth snapped together with an audible * **click** *. Chip whimpered beside him. Izuku turned around and kept walking. He walked all the way around the workout equipment only to pass in front of it to go back to the…

\-----

_ ‘But can someone explain to me why they do that whole ‘circling the table’ thing before going to the bathroom?’ _

_ ‘He does something similar when entering the kitchen, I’ve noticed.’ _

\-----

Shouta stopped dead in his tracks. He stumbled back, bile rising in his throat. Suddenly, Shouta couldn’t breathe. It’s been a while since he has had a panic attack or anything similar but this place was just about to set one off. All of the ‘Okay’s on the walls seemed to scream out. He could almost hear Izuku laughter as he painted them on the walls, still bleeding from his wounds. The lingering smoke that never quite left the area, trapped below the earth, seemed to fill his nostrils, suffocating him. He couldn’t  _ breathe _ . The workout equipment that if he looked at it hard enough he thinks he can hear the sound of metal clanging against bones and he thinks he can see the blood drip slowly off of it only to be reutilized on the walls. The bedroom full of children’s clothing and a blood-stained bed with no door or walls but a resident who made them up just to preserve a sense of normality. A kitchen that was really a bathroom, the only distinction between the two being what path the residents of this false home take to it. All of this and-

“ **This. Is the bathroom.** ”

Izuku stops outside of the  _ kitchen _ . And the resident… Those wide, but dull eyes that are filled with nothing but poorly-hidden insanity, speaking of years of torture that had warped it’s brain to be forced to create such a design because without it, that little bit of sanity it had left would have snapped.

Shouta needed out. He needed out  _ now _ . Shouta put his phone for the light on the ground as well as the belongings they had gathered.

“I- I need to talk t- t- to Hi- Yamada about s- something. I- I will be right back,” he promised. He couldn’t stay down here. He felt like he was going insane. When he reached the top of the stairs and saw that metal door, he felt bile rise again.

The resident. The caged animal. Shouta was going to be sick.

____________________________

Nemuri and Hizashi turned their heads to the sound of pounding footsteps. Shouta burst from the house, pale as death itself.

“Sh- Shouta?!” hizashi ran forward, Nemuri hot on his heels. “What’s wrong? Where is Izuku and Chip?” The man shook his head. “I- can’t- I-” He lurched forward, pushing past them. Shouta rounded to the side of the building before falling to his knees and promptly throwing up. Nemuri crouched by him, rubbing the man’s back. She hasn’t seen him this way in a long while.

“Shouta, what happened?” she asks carefully. The man falls back against the wall, gripping his hair. “I can’t. I can’t. I can’t.” He repeated it over and over again. “I c- c- couldn’t l- last ten minutes i- i- in there!” His head shot up and oh how petrified he looked. “E- eleven years!” he screeched. The last time she had seen Shouta act this way was when Shirakumo died. She shakes her head. “Shouta, calm down. Where is Izuku now?” 

His face fell. “N- Nemuri, I- I can’t go b- back.” Hizashi looked back at the house. “You left him down there?!” Nemuri slapped the yellow-haired man’s leg. “Not helping! You stay with Shouta. I will go find him.” She pressed a kiss to her boyfriend’s forehead. “Deep breath. I will bring him. Don’t worry.” Nemuri stood and ran into the house. She knew it was a basement, that is about all. She found the open padlock door in a closet. No sooner did she hear a stream of words too distant to make out mingled with broken sobs that echoed in the dark. It sounded like something you hear in one of those ghost stories. She steeled herself and ran down the stairs.

“Izuku?” she called into the dark. There was a light emitting from Shouta’s phone in the dark. Nemuri picked it up and shined it around.  _ Holy cowl… _ All of the walls…  _ Oh my goodness…  _ She forced herself to look down. “Izuku? Chip?” she called out again. Following the cries, Nemuri found a bathroom.

It truly was like something from a horror movie.

It was dark, only the ominous glow from the flashlight lighting the small room. Izuku and Chip were curled up against the wall like the ghost, their wails echoing like the screams. On the mirror drips the blood you see when the protagonist looks in it and sees a creepy figure. It sent shivers down her spine. But more than that, the slew of words from Izuku’s mouth reached her ears.

“ _ It’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokayIt’sokay. _ ”

He was hyperventilating. Nemuri put the phone down so it would shine still. “Hey,  **little man** ,” she whispered. Izuku went rigid. He looked up at her. Viridian and sky blue eyes met and Izuku let out the most ear-shattering, glass breaking, blood curdling scream Nemuri thinks she has ever heard in her life.

____________________________

Shouta’s head snapped up when he heard the scream. He heard it and he knew.

_ Izuku needs me. _

A lot of parents say they know their child’s cry by heart. Some say that it is just an innate feeling when their daughter or son needs them. Shouta never understood that feeling. He’s never had a child before. He never thought he would. But even if Izuku is not blood related to him, Izuku is his son and Shouta loves him full-heartedly and right now, right this very moment, his son needs him.

“H- hey! You can’t get up, Sho!” Hizashi tried to keep him down. The world spun around Shouta as he stood. Oooooh man it’s been a long time since he’s been deprived of air from a panic attack. “I have to go, Hizashi,” he pressed against the man. “Sho, you look like a strong wind might blow you over.” 

He’s right. Shouta knows he is right. Shouta still feels like he might throw up, again. But Izuku is screaming and his role as a father is not to run away from the insanity that is the mind of his son but instead to pull his son from it. Shouta pushes past his friend. “I’m going.” And Hizashi doesn’t try to stop him again.

The aura in the basement completed by the screaming made him dizzy all over again. It was dark without his phone light but he saw the light from the bathroom. Only it was different now. Much brighter flashes of yellow lights were emitting from it. Shouta’s hair frizzed from the static in the air. Chip and Izuku had evolved. He sprinted to the light.

“ _ It’sokayit’sokayit’sokay.Getup,LittleMan.Run,LittleMan.It’sokayit’sokayit’sokay. _ ”

Izuku was having a seizure and a freaking bad one at that. Chip was writhing on the ground. They were in their Jolteon for. Lighting was shooting from them in every direction. Even from just outside of the bathroom, Shouta began to feel his own body tensing at the amount of electricity in the air. He looks to the side. Nemuri is curled up, trying to guard herself but her arms and legs are twitching from electrocution. Shouta curses. He grabs her arm and pulls her out of the bathroom.

“Nemuri!” he shook her. Her head jolted up, eyes wide and hair frizzed. “Sh- Sh- Shouta, he’s-” “What happened?” Nemuri shakes her head. “I don’t know! All I said was ‘Hey, little man’ and-” Izuku screeched again, light exploding from the bathroom. 

“ _ It’sokay!It’sokay!It’sokay!Getup,LittleMan!Move,LittleMan!Run,LittleMan!It’sokay!It’sokay!It’sokay! _ ”

Shouta cursed. There are so many triggers they don’t know about. ‘Little Man’ is a common name adults call small children. It is usually a term of endearment. There was no way they could have known that was one of them and apparently a really big one.

_ No… it wasn’t just that. I let my fear get the best of me and left without reason when Izuku was already trying to hold it together being down here. I’m largely at fault for this one. _

He couldn’t help it. One is not supposed to be under that much stress just standing in a room but this basement… There are just so many things wrong here. It sent Shouta into a frenzy which sent Izuku into a frenzy. 

He straightened up and scooted towards the bathroom. This was really bad. At this rate, if Izuku didn’t stop spasming, he’d have brain damage. Shouta needed to put an end to this now. “Izuku!” he calls out over the wails only to receive more in response. Shouta knows it won’t work so he does the next best thing: he steels himself and jumps. Almost immediately does he have to stop himself from screaming at the onslaught of electricity that attacks his body. The raven-haired man swoops down and grabs the boy in his arms. His mind is blanking but he needs to get them out of here. Shouta takes Chip and sets him on Izuku’s chest and then, for all the life in him, sprints. Oh how his body cries out in pain as he bursts out of the house and collapses in the dirt. “Shouta! Izuku! Chip!” Hizashi runs up to them. He can’t hold it in anymore. Shouta cries out in pain.

Izuku. Won’t. STOP!

Nemuri staggers from the building. “Hizashi… get… away…” She rolls up her sleeve. Hizashi grabs the businessman’s arm and flees just as Nemuri releases her quirk, the gas emitting from her body covering a wide expanse of land. Taking deep gulps, Shouta feels his mind and body begging to shut down. Izuku and Chip finally begin to wind down as well until the three pass out in the dirt in front of the Midoriya household.

____________________________

“Nemuri, you need to stop!” Hizashi yells from the side.

Nemuri shakes her head. “They need to sleep! Dang it just let them sleep!!!” She’s crying. It hurts both physically and mentally what she saw down there. What she  _ felt _ down there. She can’t handle it. She hates seeing exactly what Izuku was subjected to for so long. It’s sickening! And Shouta obviously saw more than just what she did. He’s rational. He doesn’t just panic like that.  _ Something _ happened. She just wants them to not have to deal with it anymore!

Hizashi is pulling Mr. Iwasaki further and further away where he is starting to have to use his quirk to reach her because her sleeping gas is spreading. “Nemuri! It isn’t safe for them to be surrounded by that high of a concentration of your gas! You need to stop!” he yells again. She knows. She  _ knows _ ! But he didn’t  _ see _ what was down there. He  _ doesn’t  _ know! A part of her mind knows Shouta, Izuku and Chip won’t wake up for a long while because of her initial quirk but she can make it longer.  _ Just sleep! _

* **SLAM** *

A body hits her full force and they topple to the ground. Her head spins. The woman looks up and meets Hizashi’s lime green eyes. He’s holding his breath but his eyes say it all.  _ Calm down. You aren’t thinking rationally. You need to stop. _ Nemuri’s eyes clear. She nods and Hizashi runs back out of the cloud of purple gas. Nemuri took Butterfree’s pokeball from her pocket and threw it up, releasing the pokemon. “Butterfree, gust! Blow away the gas!” “FREE!” With its wings, the pokemon blew the dust to the winds in the opposite direction of the town. When it had dissipated, Nemuri stumbled to her feet and lurched forward to those fallen to her quirk. Electricity still hung in the air around them but she didn’t care. No, the woman took them as much as she could into her arms and she cried. She cried all of the pain she didn’t know Izuku was harboring living in that hell hole.

She hated this so much. No child- No living thing should have to suffer in this way.

Hizashi gave his farewells to Mr. Iwasaki, confirming that everything salvageable will be sold, and made his way over to them. “Hey,” he said softly, kneeling beside her. She lifts her head to look at him. “It’s wrong, Hizashi. It is so wrong!” He pulls her into a gentle hug. “I know… Let’s get them back home. I will tell Nedzu that we will not be coming in today. Did they have anything inside?” She froze. She didn’t want Hizashi to go in there. It was so… dark. But there were the notebooks she saw by Shouta’s phone when she initially went in and she told Hizashi as much. He helped her get Izuku, Chip, and Shouta into the car before going in to retrieve the items. When he came out, he, too, was just a bit more pale. It wasn’t even really anything that was said. It was the implications and the heavy atmosphere that lingered in that basement that spoke of untold horrors that were committed down there. Actions taken against the boy and the Eevee in the back seat of the car. It was sickening. 

That and the writings on the walls, the blood on the workout equipment. The blood on the floor, dried puddles of it, marks across it as though a body were being dragged. The smell of it tainted the air, stale but with the massive amounts still strong enough to make one’s stomach churn and head hurt. It was the darkness. Even with the electricity in the house turned off, those small lights couldn’t have done much. It was the smoke in the air, trapped, just accumulating over time. It was the air conditioning that, while off now, probably served to filter that for the longest time leaving the residents to freeze in that basement for years. It was the trap door in and the box of weights preventing them from leaving.

It was the cage that Izuku and Chip were trapped in for eleven long, painful years under the rule of a tyrannical owner that beat and warped the minds of his objects like it was putty in his hands until Izuku and Chip weren’t Izuku and Chip anymore and instead pawns in his game of chess to be used however he saw fit. It was where the living beings down their lost their right to life and became no longer living things, just… things, their humanity and livelihoods stripped from them.

It was the place that made dolls.

Neither spoke for the entirety of the trip.

____________________________

Shouta groaned, hands coming up to hold his head as he sat up. He knew this feeling. It was the feeling of waking up after being put to sleep by Nemuri’s quirk. He’d often ask her to put him to sleep when his PTSD acted up for far too long. But the headache? One has to basically overdose on her quirk for it to feel this way.

“Well, good evening to you too.”

Shouta looked over at the woman in question who was sitting on the loveseat. “Hizashi had to go to his radio show. Sorry about the whole,” she waved her hand, “headache and all. Kind of got a bit spooked back there.” The raven-haired man swallowed thickly. “It’s fine. I… understand.” The mood dropped like a rock. “Sho, what did you see down there that I didn’t?” Nemuri finally asked after a tense moment of silence. “You don’t break down like that. I haven’t seen you that way since”

He hung his head. “I’m afraid that I don’t have a very good reason,” he admitted. “I can’t explain it, Nemuri. What you didn’t see you didn’t see because you weren’t down there with him outside of the panic attack. I can’t explain the feeling. It was just so-” he covered his mouth, bile rising in his throat again. Shouta takes a deep breath. “I learned  _ a lot _ being down there in those few minutes. I’m sorry but the most I can tell you is that I didn’t like what I learned at all.”

Nemuri hums. “Alright… Izuku and Chip should be asleep for a while longer because they are so small. My quirk probably affected them more. Chip more so.” He nods. “Say, Nemuri? Do you mind if me and Izuku have some time alone?” He didn’t mean it to sound harsh but there are some things he needs to clear up with the boy and Eevee after his massive screw up today. Luckily, it doesn’t seem like Nemuri took it badly. She nods. “Of course.” She stands. “Me and Hizashi were planning to return to our own homes today anyway. I’ll text him. Call if you need me?” Shouta nods.

They share a quick (*cough cough* “quick- _ ish _ ”) kiss before the woman packs up and leaves.

Shouta looks around the house. Quite a few things make sense now but he wishes they never had to. The walking around the table. A part of him feels like he should be happy. After all, Izuku doesn’t do that at UA. He does it here because he has recognized this place as his home but that thought makes him mad, angry, and all around depressed because Izuku shouldn’t be doing that. He was forced into the basement, the place of his literal torture, and had to create an imaginary safe place to protect his sanity when it only served to break it. The knocking on the door and it making a sound. Surely Izuku would have known that it would but his mind was not expecting it. He was just doing it out of pure habit. His mind was not able to differentiate between the two settings. The Okays on the walls. How does that even happen? How does that start? One does not simply begin to rely on a word that wholly without an initial trigger. Was it Mrs. Midoriya? Mr. Midoriya? Was it a book he read?  _ Something _ had to happen. But to the extent of using your own blood to write it on the walls? Everywhere. It was  _ everywhere _ . 

It all fanned out from there. From that single word. The torture was  _ okay _ . The starvation was  _ okay _ . The blackmailing was  _ okay _ . The blinding was  _ okay _ . The gaslighting was  _ okay _ . Everything that Mr. Midoriya did was  _ okay _ and that spurred the part of Izuku’s mind that knew it  _ wasn’t  _ okay to make it okay by taking down right unhealthy actions. The knocking on the invisible door was  _ okay _ . The two different hallways were  _ okay _ . The ‘paintings’ on the walls were  _ okay _ .

But it’s not! Shouta thinks that if it were not for that word, not for whatever strange, unhealthy connection the boy and his Eevee had to that word then they would have been out of that home long ago and not be in the mental state they are now.

But that’s what gaslighting does, doesn’t it? It deconstructs the victims mind and builds it back up in the way the gaslighter wants it to be. And oooooh if Shouta knew where Mr. Midoriya was right now he’d strangle that man so hard for doing this to his son.

For about three hours Shouta ‘graded papers’, aka questioned what to do when they woke up. Until they did.

“EEVEE!” the raven-haired man jumped, papers scattering from his hands to the floor. Absol and Umbreon looked up from their play-fight. “EEVEE!” * **thump** * The door to Izuku’s room shook. Chip sounded very disturbed. Shouta cautiously made his way to the door. * **knock knock knock** * “Chip? Is everything alright?” he asked. “VEE!” the pokemon cried. Shouta’s heart pounded. He needed to keep calm. He could not risk another mistake. “I’m coming in,” he states, turning the door knob. Shouta pushes open the door.

“Oh. My. Gosh.”

No, there was no blood. Just a lot of paper and tape and empty notebooks. Everywhere on the walls Izuku had taped up that word. THAT DANG WORD. Not only on the walls but on the floor as well and on all of the furniture. Any blank space was covered by paper. Chip probably woke up after this had already started. Izuku was in the middle of the room on his knees, back to the door. His head turned slowly to look over his shoulder. Black eyes met dilated, crazed green. A shaky smile split the boy’s face. “Ha…” Tears filled deep viridian. “Ha ha ha…” Shouta took a step forward. “HA HA HA!” Izuku doubled over.  _ Heck no. _ Shouta bolted. He grabbed the cackling boy around the waist and all but ripped him from the room.

“HA HA HA HA HA!”

“Umbreon! Absol! Seviper! Clean  _ that _ up!” 

When Seviper pulled the door closed and the papers containing that forsaken word disappeared from his sight, Izuku’s breathing got more erratic. The laughing never stopped though. He lashed out, struggling in Shouta’s hold. Shouta’s back hit the wall and they slid down to the ground. “Izuku, calm down!” he held his son tighter, only getting more laughter in response.  _ Something… Something! _ “Keep him out!” Shouta let go, Izuku immediately propelled to his room door, the pokemon on the other side pressing against it to keep it closed. Shouta bolted to his bathroom.  _ Something to calm him down. _ He took the bathrobe from the hanger on the door and bolted back down the hall, practically jumping over the hyperventilating boy. Shouta swiped his phone from the living room coffee table before rushing back to the hallway. He slid to the floor, dropping his phone on the way. Shouta threw the robe over Izuku and wrapped his arms around the greenette’s waist, pulling back. His ears rang with the sounds of Izuku’s crazed laughter. The boy’s lips were turning blue from lack of air. Keeping a tight grip with one arm around Izuku’s waist, Shouta used the other to swipe his phone from the ground and look up a show, Bridal Dressings.

For a minute, he just let it play. He couldn’t get it near the thrashing teen in his arms or it might break. But the sound was enough. The sound and the fact that Izuku’s body was running down due to lack of air. When it was nothing more than twitching, Shouta moved the phone to hold it in front of the boy. He didn’t dare let his arm relax though. He held a tight grip on his son. At some point Izuku relaxed against him fully.

He wasn’t pushing away and as surprising as that was, it also wasn’t at all.

Separation anxiety. Izuku probably has it and Shouta does not blame him. When did it start? Probably around when Izuku and Mrs. Midoriya were separated from each other when Izuku was moved to the basement and from there on it grew. Even to Mr. Midoriya, as sickening as it sounds. He has known the man his whole life and to some degree, Izuku had built up a reliance on the man despite being subjected to torture from him. A child’s imprint is strong. A child’s mind is fragile. Izuku had imprinted on the man who destroyed his mind and so he stayed.

As for Shouta?

Oh, he made a major mistake but Izuku didn’t develop in healthy ways and as such his mind did not either. Many years behind emotionally and psychologically he may be in some places and in others many, many years ahead of his age, forced to grow up too quickly in the worst possible ways. Shouta screwed up but to Izuku that is ‘okay’ no matter how ‘not okay’ that is and his separation anxiety forbids him from leaving Shouta again. Especially after the man in question left him in the basement.

What a mess Izuku is.

Everything about him. From his stunted growth to his tortured mind. There is hardly a sight of a healthy child within him and Shouta has ignored that. They all have. They’ve beat around the bush saying ‘It’s not okay  _ but _ .’ There was always a but. Humans tend to minimize the pain of others too often, acknowledging the pain but instead of listening they try and fix it as though it were that simple making the one in pain feel stupid for not fixing it. If they don't offer a way out then they try to give examples of why their pain is much worse as though that would help the one in pain when all it does is overshadow them and forces them to hold down their pain once more.

Eventually there is a breaking point.

But Shouta already knew all of this. He knew perfectly well what he was getting himself into when he decided to take Izuku as his son. Sure, he may have gotten a bit shaken up by the scene in the basement but that does not change his resolve to be Izuku’s father or his resolve to help the broken teen. 

Seviper opens the door revealing the walls bare from the papers. Shouta hears Izuku’s breath hitch. He turns off and lowers the phone.

“Well,” Izuku flinches, “that can’t happen,” Shouta states bluntly. “First off, I’m sorry. I’ll admit, I got a bit spooked by the basement.” he puts down the phone and ruffles Izuku’s hair. “And I got a bit spooked by the state of mind up here. Not the prettiest things to remember, is it?” … “But you do and your memories aren’t the prettiest thing for others to witness either. You’ve experienced a lot, haven’t you, Izuku, Chip?” The Eevee, curled up at Shouta’s side, whimpered. 

“There is a lot you don’t understand right now and a lot you won’t ever understand. It’s a whole new world you’ve been introduced to so let me put into perspective what you are facing now. The only beating, hitting, or burning you will experience will be from your work as a hero and maybe the occasional burn if you slip up in the kitchen. My apologies but I won’t be abusing you any time soon. Yelling and manipulation and the like, well, I don’t plan to manipulate you in any way and if I ever raise my voice at you it is because you are across the house and I am too lazy to get off my butt to come get you.”

The two looked up at him.

“Things are going to be really different from your life in the basement,” Shouta continues. “You will have hot water at your disposal, for one. That comes with a bath and shower. You will have clothes that fit you and there will be three meals a day, or one and a half until you can stomach more than that because I know you are struggling to eat. You will have a bed that is longer than you like most beds are. You will wear the clothes the way you like them and style your hair and fur the way you want to. Believe it or not, your bedroom door will make noise if you knock on it and when you close it. There is also a difference between the kitchen and the bathroom and you don’t have to take certain paths to distinguish the two apart from each other. There is going to be light as well. The only door that will be locked is the front door and I will teach you how to unlock it.”

Shouta glanced down. The two looked confused as though they didn’t know what he was doing. Unsure of his motives. That’s fine. They would find no evil motives in him.

“As for everything else, you will experience warmth here. That goes for actual temperature and for the heart. Laughter and joy are things that happen here. You are going to meet people that care for you and want to see you happy rather than writhing in pain. You are going to experience love-”

A flinch.

“Oh, right, you don’t like that word very much, do you?” Shouta looked up and rested his head on the green curls of his son as they stared into the room. “It’s betrayed you one too many times. Let me tell you this: that wasn’t ‘love’. No one who ‘loved’ their child would do any of the things they did to you two.” The two had begun to shake. A much hated word. “ **They don’t love you like I do.** ” Izuku and Chip went still. Shouta hummed. “Let me tell you something, Izuku, Chip. In the course of you living here I plan to show you what real love is. The love of a father. I know, I know, it may be hard to believe after the massive screw up I made today but I do believe I have a right to emotions as well, wouldn’t you say? They got the best of me today just like yours did just now and oh what a nasty way they get ahold of us but we are human and we feel them. So again, I am sorry for my actions today. I will strive to do better as your father-in-training because ooooh boy am I bad at parenting.”

A snort. He was getting somewhere at least.

“Villains may come after you for reasons we do not know but there are people around you now who will put their lives on the line for you instead of putting their lives to use to destroy you. It won’t be an easy road. PTSD is a very mean thing. Nightmares will come and go. This,” he gestures to the room, “what you did just now I know will probably happen again and I also know that while you don’t want your mind to be ripped to shreds it is and even if you don’t want to succumb to your fears and do this again I fully expect it to and I completely understand.”

Shouta takes a deep breath. Hard talk is hard. He so badly wants to say ‘It’s hard but it will get better’ however that isn’t what Izuku and Chip need to hear right now. They need hard facts.

“Next time you feel like doing that,” Shouta starts again, “or piercing your ear or some other part of your body or screaming or yelling or anything, come to me. I can’t do much but I can be there for you. It’s going to hurt, this process of healing/ It’s going to be a long, long journey. Know that you aren’t alone in it. It’s not okay and I won’t pretend that it is and you need to stop pretending that it is too. Come to me in those times when you feel like you are forcing yourself to make it okay.” Shouta steeled himself. He held his son tightly and stated the next sentence boldly.

“ **Come to me and I will make it okay.** ”

Izuku and Chip looked up at him with awestruck eyes.

Shouta will do this. He will embrace this role of father and make good on his promise. Far too many times has Izuku and Chip been lied to. It is about time someone lives up to their promises and it will start with him.

He knows very well that these  _ okay _ ’s can’t just disappear from Izuku’s life. It’s simply not possible to erase something so prominent and, sadly, so destructive but he can start to change it into something good. Or at least, not as bad.

Izuku leaned back into Shouta’s grasp. He figures the greenette won’t do much talk so he will take what he can get. Chip crawls up and curls into Izuku’s lap. Shouta stands, holding the two of them in his arms. He casts his black eyes once more in Izuku’s room. 

It’s a rough and bumpy ride they have in front of them, that’s for sure. He shakes his head and walks away.

Izuku and Chip both ended up coming down with fevers. He had Chiyo come over and take a look at them and teach him how to handle these sorts of things. It was diagnosed as a stress-induced fever which Shouta supposes makes sense. The boy was thrown so suddenly into this new world. He thought that everything was going well but Chiyo explained that certain things probably triggered it such as shopping and eating that Shouta never would have thought about otherwise. To suddenly spend so much money, or, at least, to have that much spent on him was probably stressful in its own right. Having food at the ready at all times was unfamiliar. He was torn between eating and not eating to save it and even if he wanted to he couldn’t because his body could not physically handle eating on such a regular basis and in such a large amount, that was really small in reality.

Shouta never would have thought about any of that. Actually, he wouldn’t have known about the fever in the first place if it weren’t for him just casually combing his fingers through Izuku’s hair. The boy never let off that he was sick. He never acted like a sick person would. When Shouta first stated that he was practically melting Izuku  _ insisted _ that he was  _ okay _ but he freaking  _ wasn’t _ !

It was sickening to think that Izuku and Chip had probably suffered many illnesses untreated like this alone with only themselves to keep company.

It took a few days to die down, the fever that is. Chiyo discovered that Izuku’s medical records were not up to date. He hadn’t gotten any shots or immunizations in a long, long while. That paired with his already weak body, despite the obvious build up of muscle, made it for one hell of a trip down woozy lane. Nevertheless, Shouta, Umbreon, Absol, and Seviper took it in stride. Hizashi and Nemuri came over for a bit but only Nemuri could stay. They know that the two don’t mean bad but in their delirious states Chip and Izuku were frightened by Hizashi’s presence. It couldn’t be helped.

So Shouta and Nemuri took care of them together.

Izuku still seemed a bit wary of Shouta but the separation anxiety soon turned in Shouta’s favor especially during the time of sickness where Izuku would cling to him and that would give Shouta time to prove his worthiness to the boy. By Friday, Izuku and Chip were back to being normal around him once their fevers broke and oh what a joyous occasion it was when they did because fever dreams are about twenty million times worse when you are a traumatized child. Despite being sick the two constantly woke up in a panic or screaming and while SHouta knew that would become a common occurrence any way with their states of mind, he knew it was worse now specifically because of the fever. 

Shouta does not like the combination of Izuku, Chip, and fevers he decided.

____________________________

Izuku stretched his arms over his head, yawning loudly.

It was Friday afternoon and his fever had broken and he blessedly got a good rest with it gone. He patted his bed that he was laying in. It was odd having one of his own. He never planned to use it, at least, not until that conversation with Dad after his little break down a couple of days ago. He didn’t want to get used to it only to have it stripped away along with everything else. Dad kept him in it the whole time he was sick, which Izuku doesn’t really think he was  _ that _ sick. He’s had worse. Still, it felt kind of nice to be doted on like that but they will never admit it.

“You awake?” he asked. Chip’s head lifted from the bed. “Vee!” Izuku smiled and got out of bed. Chip helped him make the bed. His hand lingered on the doorknob to his room.  _ It’s okay to go out, right? It should be fine. Dad won’t get mad, will he? _

* **knock knock knock** *

He and Chip jumped back. “Izuku? Chip?” Dad’s voice. “I heard you wake up. Can I come in?” The greenette pursed his lips.  _ He’s asking me?  _ Izuku waited. He was testing the man on the other side of the door. If he waited long enough would he come in either way? A ploy this most likely was. So he waited. And waited. And waited. Until he got tired of waiting. “Dad…?” he questioned hesitantly.

“Hmm?”

Viridian and rainbow eyes blinked. He was still there. He isn’t coming in. He is waiting. Izuku smiled a bit. He reached forward and opened the door. The raven-haired man smirked at him knowingly. “How are you feeling, bud?” He shrugs. “Been better, I guess but pretty good.” Dad hums. “Well, if you are feeling up to it, would you like to go to UA today and meet Smokey again?”

_ What’s with this? Giving me the choice to do things or not like he cares? _ Izuku stops that train of thought.  _ No, Dad does care. Shut up stupid brain.  _

“Sure.”

He felt better after the whole house incident. Even though he broke down again, knowing he left the house and that he is not going back (hopefully) feels like a weight was lifted from his shoulders. He pulled on a black t-shirt and tucked it into some blue jeans before putting on a black belt. Izuku leaves his room on quiet feet. He walks down the hall and enters the living room. Dad looks up from his laptop but doesn’t comment on the way Izuku rounds the coffee table and walks back into the hallway. It doesn’t really register with Izuku that he does it. He just… does he supposes. In the bathroom, Izuku brushes his teeth and attempts to comb his hair before styling it swooped to the right with the hair gel Kayama gave him. He kneels down and uses it to spike up Chip’s fur as well. “Vee!” Izuku chuckles before standing and washing the gel from his hands. He puts in his earrings but leaves off the chain necklace. It doesn’t really fit the outfit. Speaking of which… Izuku looks at his arms, at the scars that travel up and down them. At their small stature despite the muscle.

“Should I put on a jacket?” he muses to himself.

“I think you look fine,” Dad pokes his head in. Izuku and Chip jump, startled. Black eyes meet green. “Scars are a sign that you survived. Don’t ever be ashamed of the fact that you were stronger than those that tried to tear you down.” He points down at the round glasses. “Don’t forget those.” And with that, Dad leaves, leaving a stunned Izuku and Chip in the bathroom. The greenette locks blankly down at the glasses.

Even though he had eye surgery which helped greatly, due to the extent of the damage his sight was still a bit blurry without the glasses. That’s fine. They mean a lot to him either way.

Izuku picks them up and slides them onto his face, looking in the mirror. He smiles. “I think I’ll leave the jacket at home today.” He put in Chip’s earrings and left the bathroom with a small smile on his lips. It may not be the confident smirk he used to have and it may hurt to smile more than not nowadays but right now-

He looks up at his father.

\- right now he thinks it will be okay.

“Is school in session right now?” he asks, looking out of the window of Dad’s car. It makes his head spin, suddenly having sight and seeing everything pass by at such a fast rate. “It should be,” Dad replies. Izuku doesn’t see him glance over and smirk at Izuku’s bewildered eyes at the world around him in color and light. It had been a while since Izuku stepped onto UA’s campus. Well, to him at least. Two weeks is pretty long. Wait, no, three because of the internships. Those went just  _ splendidly _ . 

Passing through the hallways, Izuku glanced into a few rooms. They were on the general studies floor. There were students in seats listening attentively to their teachers, some slacking off. Oh how he longed to be in there. Part of him wished for the normal. They made their way to the first floor gymnasium. Izuku had only been in here once. Their class typically goes to the bigger gymnasiums outside of the main school building. 

“Eraserhead!” Principal Nedzu exclaims as they enter. “Izuku!” The greenette is a bit taken back by the use of his first name. Not that he minds it.

_ Not Midoriya. Not Midoriya. Not Midoriya. _

“We’ve been waiting.” “Doom!” Almost instinctively, he and Chip flinched back. Next to Principal Nedzu in the middle of the gymnasium stood Smokey, the Houndoom towering tall over the small pokemon principal. Dad put a hand on his shoulder. “You don’t have to do this.” Izuku swallowed thickly. He took a step forward. The large, dog-like pokemon kneeled down, trying to make himself as small as possible before the frightened teen and his Eevee.

“I am sure you have some reservations towards each other,” Principal Nedzu stated. Izuku stopped a bit before Smokey. His body wouldn’t stop shaking. “Smokey has been released from his pokeball so right now he is technically a wild pokemon.” Izuku didn’t notice Dad stiffen.

The boy didn’t know it yet but the pokeball for Smokey actually had to be broken by the school to release Smokey because Mr. Midoriya was still missing. If you don’t know, pokeballs take a hell of a lot of work to break.

“If you would like, you could take him as your own,” Principal Nedzu continued. “The choice is yours.”

Izuku bit his tongue. It wasn’t like he had anything against Smokey personally. It was just the memories. The flashing of claws and the way they tore into his flesh. The smokey that filled his lungs, burned his eyes and throat, and suffocated him to the point of passing out. The fire that danced on his skin, burning him alive and threatening to leave nothing more than a pile of ash where he stood just mere moments before.

Izuku reached out his hand carefully. Smokey leaned forward, only a bit, and pressed his muzzle to the palm. Tears filled Izuku’s green eyes.

But it wasn’t all bad. It was the nights that he spent by the door to the basement as he sat on those cold stairs and ‘talked’ with the pokemon guarding the other side. It was the training that the pokemon used to heat up the basement so if only for an hour he’d feel warmth, a stark contrast to the cold. It was pressing up against the metal door of the basement while Smokey heated it. During the days of his youth, it was Smokey bringing him food and water and providing comfort. The rides on the pokemon’s back when he still knew how to smile and it not being an air of false confidence. Growing up, it was the times he would step in before Mr. Midoriya actually killed him.

And most importantly, it was the assurance that while he may not be able to escape, there was someone, something, on the other side of that dark basement door that was on his side.

Izuku fell to his knees, suddenly losing the strength to stand. He wrapped his arms around the large pokemon, taking in the warmth that used to comfort him so much. And he wailed. Oh how he cried. “I- I- I’m sorry! I- I want to p- protect you too!” It hurt. He tried so hard, SO HARD to protect everyone! It was all just a ploy though. A way to manipulate him when Mr. Midoriya wouldn’t have really hurt them. All along though Smokey was the only one that needed the protection from Mr. Midoriya and Izuku couldn’t provide it. The only thing he could do was let Smokey hurt them too so that Mr. Midoriya would not turn his back on the Houndoom as well. He cried until he couldn’t cry no more, which wasn’t much because he was just recovering from being sick. 

“I’m sorry…” he whispered. “I- I’m so sorry…” Chip curled up against Smokey, whimpering as well. Dad and Principal Nedzu stayed silent. “Doom…” Smokey nudged under Izuku’s chin making the boy look up. The pokemon shook his head. Viridian eyes searched the pokemon but found no loathing or resentment held towards him. Only sadness and regret. What Smokey had to regret Izuku did not know. 

The sound of a rolling ball met his ears. * **tap** * Izuku looked down at what hit his leg: a pokeball. He looked up at Dad who was crouching nearby and then back to the ball. Izuku glanced over at Smokey. “Sm- Smokey…” he reached down and picked up the ball. “I- I don’t know i- if you still want t- to be u- under a trainer o- or anything but… i- if you do I promise not t- to be like him so…” Without waiting, Smokey tapped his nose to the button on the pokeball and in a flash of light disappeared into it. Izuku and Chip waited.

It shook once.

Twice.

Three times.

* **doot doot** *

Then it stopped. He and Chip looked at each other. Wiping his eyes, Izuku reached forward and released the pokemon. Smokey burst out in light. “Doom!” He seemed to smile down at the two of them. He couldn’t help it, a smile broke onto Izuku’s face as well.

“Thank you…”

Izuku, Smokey, Chip, and Dad all walked down the halls of UA to the front. Principal Nedzu road on Dad’s shoulder. “So, Izuku, Chip, do you two think you will be ready to come back on Monday to school?” their principal asked. Honestly? Izuku couldn’t wait. But the prospect terrified him. As much as he was glad that his class came to the trial and that it was not just some rando’s who didn’t know him, he also knew they would see him in a different light now and Izuku couldn’t blame them. He didn’t feel like himself either. He couldn’t walk in there confidently with his feet kicked up like he did before. Well, he  _ could _ but it wouldn’t feel the same. He acted out that way to spite Mr. Midoriya and to have freedom from home but now he was out. Izuku didn’t want to change but was that him in the first place? Everything felt so off. 

Still, he could confidently say that “Yes,” he did want to go back to school.

Principal Nedzu nods. “Good to hear it. There are a few assignments you will need to catch up on but for the most part you have been exempt.” Izuku bows a bit. “Thank you, sir.” He cringed a bit. He still hated adults, make no mistake of it, but it was a bit more rounded out now having found some trustworthy ones and he didn’t want to get on Principal Nedzu’s bad side, not after all he had done for him. Principal Nedzu left them to head home soon after.

As they were walking to the UA gate, Izuku noticed his class from afar in their gym uniforms leaving the glass gym. He wonders what they did. They were laughing and chatting and then… He wonders if his presence made a difference at all.

“Ah!” One of them points in their direction, Kaminari Denki. “It’s Izuku!” He waves wildly. “Izuku!!!” The rest of the class waves as well, calling out their greetings. They weren’t approaching. Giving him space, perhaps? That doesn’t matter. What matters is that they remember him. So he raises his hand and waves back.

_ Ah, I can’t wait to go back to school. _


	20. Christmas Special

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is a bit in the future of the timeline of the canon fic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note at the end.

_ 'Fshhhh…' a little boy makes the sound of things rustling in a box with his mouth. “Here we go!” a little boy pulls out… nothing. From a box that doesn’t exist he takes out a strand of lights that don’t exist and turns to a tree that doesn’t exist. None of it exists. He knows this. _

_ He just doesn’t want to believe it. _

_ Neither does his Eevee. So, in the dark of a cold basement with layers of socks on their feet and paws, they ‘decorate’ a ‘Christmas tree’. There are ‘red ornaments’ and ‘blue ornaments’ and ‘rainbow lights’. There is a ‘red carpet’ underneath and ‘fake fluffy snow’ scattered around on the ‘branches’.  _

_ OH! And on the top there is even a _

_ Big _

_ Bright _

_ Shining _

_ ‘STAR!’ _

_A little boy and his Eevee step back to take a look at their handy work and they admire… a wall. It is gray and bare except for the blood staining it, words that seem to whisper at them that ‘This is okay.’ ‘This is real.’ ‘This is a tree.’ ‘It’s okay.’ ‘This is nOrMaL.’ ‘This is OKAY.’_

_ Because it has to be. Because Mommy says it is. Because even if she is up there and they are down here she said it is and Mommy never lies. It’s okay… _

_ Because it’s Christmas so… it has to be! _

_ Right? _

_ \----- _

_ A little boy and his Eevee count their ‘presents’. _

_ Daddy left one on his right arm, on his left arm, on his right leg, on his side, on the back of his head, on his left wrist, on his left thigh… Daddy left one on the Eevee’s back, on his front leg, on his back legs, on his side, on his back, on his stomach, and on his head. _

_ They got so many presents! _

_ They have to wrap them themselves though. With white wrap- bandages -ping paper and gl- burn cream -ue. They aren’t under the ‘tree’ either. _

_ There is a little bit of their present on that wall.  Okay. _

_ And some over on that one.  Okay. _

_ A bit on the weight bar.  OkAy. _

_ And there is a whole lot on the floor!  OKAY. _

_ Presents, presents, presents. They are everywhere! Aren’t they so  lucky . And upstairs his FaMiLy is celebrating too, opening presents of their own! Do they hurt as much? No, no, no, don’t think that way.  This is okay . _

_ And it is. Because Mommy says so. Because it’s the season for joy. Because it’s the season for HoPe. Because there is a ‘tree’ and a ‘star’ and ‘presents’. So this is okay. This is normal. _

_ Because it’s Christmas! _

_ Christmas is… okay, they suppose… _

_ \----- _

_ Wow… A Christmas tree... _

_ He stumbled through the upper house, dragged by Mr. Midoriya’s hot hand. There was a tree in the Midoriya’s living room. It looked a lot better than his downstairs. _

_ At least it had form. It had shape. It had color and light. At least it was rea- _

_ No! Mine is real! It’s real! It’s okay! It’s real! _

_ His eyes drifted to the bottom of the tree where it was blank. No presents delivered just yet. He wonders how many he will get this year. He got a whole broken rib last year! Isn’t that nice? It’s nice right? Right?! It’s nice… _

_ B- because… i- it’s Christmas… Christmas is… nice... _

  
  


_ \----- _

_ ‘Merry Christmas!’ _

_ The boy and his Eevee stare at the table in a mansion where a few brightly colored presents sat. He felt… nothing. A girl and a boy waited for their reaction. They didn’t see the way his breathing shortened or hear the way his heart pounded in his chest harder and Harder and HARDER! _

_ But they did see his face and as long as his face said it was okay then it would be. He just had to smile and when he smiled they would think it is okay and if they think it is okay. They can’t hear his heart or see his chest not move under his clothes but they see his face so he pulls out two stolen suckers and looks up and he smiles. _

_ ‘Merry Christmas!’ _

_ He smiles because it’s Christmas. _

_ Christmas is… _

_______________________________

“OKAY!”

Izuku crumples to the ground before the Christmas tree, hands over his ears. “IT’S OKAY! CHRISTMAS IS OKAY!” He can’t stop. He thinks it has been a while since he had a breakdown but he doesn’t care. He needs this. Because under the Christmas tree it’s bare but it won’t always be. He knows it won’t always be. He knows that soon ‘presents’ will come in a few days and it will all be over. “I- I- IT’S OKAY! IT’S OKAY! IT’S OKAY!”

Because it’s Christmas! And that’s what happens on Christmas! It’s a time of joy and hope! It’s nice! It’s smiling! It’s a little bit of ‘present’ here and a little bit of ‘present’ there, some on this wall and on that wall because that. Is. CHRISTMAS.

And Christmas is- “IZUKU!”

The greenette’s leg jolts from under him. He sees the floor come to his face at a rapid rate, expecting the pain but only able to think:  _ Ah, presents came early. _ Two hands came to catch him.  _ NononononoNO. * _ **SLAP** _ * _ He instinctively slapped the hand away and went crashing to the ground, paralyzed in fear if not for his rapidly increasing spasms.

Black hair, black eyes. That man loomed over him, speaking something frantically but through Izuku’s equally as frantic heart beat and the static in his ears those words fell on deaf ears. Mr. Midoriya moved his hands, taking a step forward.

“I- IT’S NOT CHRISTMAS YET!” Izuku screeched, putting an effective halt to everyone in the room. A crooked grin split his face and against his jerking body and knelt forward and pressed his forehead to the ground, begging. “I- it’s not Christmas yet! N- not yet! P- please! P- presents come on Christmas, right? Right?! I- it’s not Christmas! It’s not!” More muffled speaking. The man moved again.

_______________________________

“NOT YET!”

Shouta froze. He couldn’t get close to Izuku and Chip. Especially not with Smokey coming running out from the Izuku’s bedroom in an angered furry. Shouta looked back at Izuku and Chip. They were petrified. Staring at his hands with every move, mumbling about presents this and presents that and every move he made it was “Not yet” and that only left one question:

_ What the hell happened during Christmas before his year?! _

Izuku and Chip took one look at Smokey and let out the most ear piercing, glass shattering screech Shouta has ever heard in his life. The Houndoom flinched back and Shouta swears he saw realization dawn in the eyes of that pokemon and,  _ Oh, he knows. _ Making a split decision, Shouta spins around and swiftly leaves the living room, tapping the pokemon on the side as he passes.

“Alright,” he sits in the hallway, Smokey crouching beside him, “you know something I don’t but I think I do so I am going to ask you two questions and you are going to respond, got it? Because it’s been nearly two weeks since they have broken down and of all things to start it, it was staring at a tree in the middle of the living room. Got it?”

“Doom.”

Shouta pursed his lips. He could hear Izuku and Chip muttering up a storm from the living room. All Shouta did was put up the tree so that they could decorate it. Despite his demeanor, he did decorate for the holiday to some degree, even if it was just his and his pokemon’s stockings and the tree. Still, he wanted to do this as a family, even inviting Nemuri over, so he waited to decorate the tree. When Izuku and Chip woke up, the first day of Winter Break, Shouta was in the kitchen mulling over breakfast because he very much wanted to keep Izuku and Chip eating the full two meals a day that he had gotten them to. He had heard their bedroom door open and shouted a ‘good morning’. Izuku stopped midway through his own ‘good morning’ alerting Shouta that something was wrong.

Oh how he prayed that nothing was wrong though. He had an inkling, an itching feeling in the back of his mind that maybe holidays weren’t a good thing in Izuku’s mind just by natural progression of how Mr. Midoriya manipulated him and probably used it against him in some way, shape, or form but they didn’t really have any reaction to Thanksgiving or Halloween, only that they weren’t used to celebrating them. So Shouta prayed and prayed and  _ prayed _ that the same would be for Christmas but…

It would seem that isn’t the case.

He runs a hand through his hair. “Question 1: Is Christmas a good thing in Izuku’s and Chip’s minds?” Smokey tilted his head. “Okay, let me rephrase that. Is it in a normal sense. Not it is ‘okay’ and he acted it out. I mean is it something that they associate with pain?”

Smokey nodded. Shouta sighed.  _ Of course. _

“Question 2: these ‘presents’ are beatings, aren’t they?” Oh how Shouta really wished that Smokey didn’t nod. He wished and dreamed and prayed that the Houndoom would  _ not freaking nod _ .

But he did.

Izuku has very… specific triggers Shouta has noticed. Things like the walking around the table he still hasn’t been able to shake. The knocking on his bedroom door. Just little things that he does that if he doesn’t do he freaks out about world knows what. Some things he reacts to differently than others but it is never what Shouta expects him to react to but he should have expected this, really. Because why wouldn’t Mr. Midoriya use Christmas against them? After all, he seemed pretty fine with hanging the lives of those dearest to Izuku over his head for a good eleven years.

Still, it’s been about two,  _ maybe three _ , weeks since Izuku’s and Chip’s last meltdown. Shouta was really hoping to get through the month of December without one. They had been doing so well! But it is as Chiyo says, a few months against 11 years of torture doesn’t magically fix everything. Maybe even 15 years. They are still looking into it but Izuku had brought up that yelling was common in the Midoriya household even before he was diagnosed as elementless. It had to leave some imprint on his mind for him to remember it at that young of an age. Then again, anything as mentally scarring as what they went through would leave an imprint at that age.

“Thank you,” Shouta stands. “Sorry, but I think you should probably stay in his room until I calm them down.” “Doom…” Smokey is understanding though, a pokemon wise beyond years. Shouta has to wonder how he was raised with Mr. Midoriya when they first bonded at the ripe age of four. Was the man always this manipulative? For how long had Smokey been under his spell? He shakes his head. Right now, he has other things to deal with.  _ Work on one mentally unstable, traumatized being at a time! _

_ Wow. Never thought I’d be thinking that in my lifetime. _

Shouta has developed a sort of way to handle Izuku and Chip when they fall out of sorts. Of course, every trigger is different and finding a new one, Christmas he supposes, requires a little twink on the method but he has sadly gotten used to it. Sometimes it is tiring going through the steps all over again as it happens twice, maybe three times a month now, as well as the tri-weekly nightmares, but Shouta is willing to go the length for their peace of mind.

Or, well, semi-peace. The traumatized mind is never completely calmed.

After a few minutes of rocking them, the two wrapped in his navy blue bathrobe, and a few minutes of holding his hand over Izuku’s eyes, and a few minutes of clothing shows in the background, Izuku and Chip come to a somewhat aware state. Aware enough to realize that it is Shouta and Absol and Umbreon and Seviper and not Mr. Midoriya and Smokey before Smokey was good. 

“So,” he started, Izuku flinching in his arms, “forgive me if I am wrong but as your father that loves you quite a lot and would never hurt you, I think I know you two quite well. That being said,” he ran his fingers through lush green locks, “I think you have a misconception about ‘presents’,” a flinch, “and Christmas in general. If you are feeling up to it, could you tell me what Christmas is to you?”

Izuku didn’t respond for a long time but eventually, with a shuddering breath, he pointed to a bare corner of the living room.

“I- it was…” Izuku started slowly, “p- putting up a tree.”

Shouta has been working with Izuku on recognizing when something he did in the basement was real or fake. As disturbing as it may sound, the state Shouta and the others retrieved Izuku and Chip from was one where everything that had happened was so thoroughly ingrained in them that they could not imagine it being fake or else it would disturb this messed up sense of peace they thought they had created when in reality it was what kept them silent for so long. That is why Izuku pointed at the bare corner without something in it. Because he knew that there was nothing there and while he may have ‘set up a tree’ in the corner of his basement, it wasn’t ever actually there. Just an illusion.

“I- it was… going through the box,” the boy waves his hands in front of him. “Fshhhh…” the sound escapes the greenette’s lips. Shouta leans over a bit, just enough to see the teen’s face but not disturb him. Those viridian eyes had gone dull and his body had begun to shake again, fingers twitching. “I- it is,”  _ is _ not  _ was _ , “p- presents from M- Mr. Midoriya. S- Santa doesn’t visit bad ch- children… Bad…” Shouta cringed.  _ Wait it out. Wait it out. _ “I- it is a lot of p- presents.” Izuku points to his arm. “One h- here.” To his leg. “One here.” He waves his hand. “S- some everywhere b- but his favorite pl- place to p- put the present is right here,” Izuku touches his stomach. “I- it makes me f- fall to my knees. I- it’s okay.”

“O- oh… but the best p- part about the presents is th- that they all  _ explode _ !” Shouta almost choked. Izuku let out a quiet chuckle, hands clasping and then fanning out. “H- he always makes sure th- they are the ones that e- explode. L- like a party popper! That’s okay! B- because i- it made the house pretty!” Izuku pointed to the wall. “A- a little present there!” He points to a new spot. “A- and there!” Again. “And-” 

Shouta takes Izuku’s outstretched hand and puts his other hand over Izuku’s eyes.“Alright, that’s enough, Izuku,” he cuts his son off. He feels the wetness of Izuku’s tears on the palm of his hand. 

Did he expect anything less? No. Did he hope for a better, happier response? He shouldn’t have.

He gave Izuku and Chip a second to calm down and reorient themselves to reality again. It always takes a bit. “Things are quite a bit different now,” he starts softly. “Presents aren’t going to be on your body unless it is clothing, for starters. And there is an actual tree with actual decorations that we are actually going to put up. Would you like to do that?”

Izuku sniffed. “I- I’m scared.”

He was also working on getting Izuku to admit that, oh, I dunno, he has actual emotions?

Shouta hummed. “I know. I’m sorry, I wanted to surprise you so I did the heavy lifting part of putting up the tree but it seems to have backfired. How about this: we try Christmas, a real one, and if at any point you don’t think you can handle it, we will stop. Though it isn’t for a few days yet.” Izuku and Chip met eyes. Silence insured before a small, quite:

“Okay…”

And Shouta supposes he will have to let the ‘okay’ instead of ‘alright’ slide for now.

_______________________________

Izuku can’t help the way he reacts to the holiday of Christmas. His therapist says he has a warped version of emotions and thinking and that his memory is warped too. He says that some of the things he perceives as real and normal are usually perceived that way. He says his mind is wired differently than others but not in a good way. It’s like a cord that was snipped and rewired to a different one that wasn’t supposed to be there in the first place, one that was built by Mr. Midoriya. He says it can be fixed.

Sometimes Izuku has a hard time believing that.

Or a lot of the time. It’s been months since coming to live with Dad and things  _ have _ gotten better, he thinks, but he can’t help these little things that press at the back of his mind. The sound of another’s footsteps in the house, the warmth of the water, of the air, the closet that is still covered by a blanket but he  _ knows _ is there. Small somethings that keep building against his fortitude.

Christmas just… he  _ sees  _ it. But it’s like, flickering? The tree in the corner. His fingers twitch with a need to move to decorate it but, as Dad says, it isn’t there. But now there is a ‘real’ one and it just feels so wrong. But that bare corner screams the need for it to hold what never existed in the first place. The walls need to be covered. The stocking needs to be hung. The presents need to be placed where they belong.

A little here… a little there… 

The thing is, that wire has started to connect to the ‘right one’, so his therapist says but when he saw the tree-

\-----

_ ‘Hmmm HMMM Hmm hmmm…’ he sings the familiar Christmas tune of Jingle bells. _

\-----

Izuku’s hands freeze, fingers curling around the red orb in his hands. The  _ real _ ornament in his hands. It feels smooth under his pads. It’s cool to the touch. It felt both fragile and sturdy at the same time. It felt  _ real _ .

“Izuku.” He jumps. A steady hand found his shoulders. “It will be different this year,” Dad promised him. Izuku looked up and met his father’s black eyes. The earnesty found in them made him want to believe it was true. Izuku lets out a noncommittal hum.  _ Sure… _

When the actual day came around though, he could not find it in himself to be cheerful and bright like the song says. The night before he slept with Dad. He needed to keep an eye on the man. He had plans to stay up all night, sometimes Mr. Midoriya would visit at night just like ‘Santa.’

Izuku imagines Mr. Midoriya to be the opposite of the jolly Santa on Christmas day. Is there something like that? The devil for Christmas? Christmas demon?

But Dad ran his fingers through Izuku’s hair and Chip’s fur until they simply could not keep their eyes open. He just needs to believe it will be alright. It will be  _ okay. _

The next morning, he woke up to the same sight of his father, only Dad was sitting up, waiting for Izuku to wake up. In the drowsiness of the morning, he almost forgot what day it was. And then he remembered. Izuku threw off the covers, scrambling back and falling off the bed with a * **thump** *. His eyes stayed glued to the man on the bed who stayed perfectly still. Izuku glared at the man with all of his might. What would he do? What should Izuku do? Is it a waiting game? Who will deliver the presents first?

Whose will break first?

After a few minutes of waiting, though, Izuku realized that Dad wasn’t moving. Then the man yawned. Izuku flinched, expecting flames to escape those lips but it was nothing more than a simple nod. The greenette raised an eyebrow.  _ Is this a joke? One of those gag gifts?  _ He crawled forward, slowly around the bed. He peeked over the side of the bed at the raven-haired man.

_ He promised. Dad never lies. He promised it would be different. _

Izuku pulled himself onto the bed. Chip whimpered, still on the floor. Izuku hashed him and crawled forward. _Don’t forget who you are. Don’t forget where you are. Dad is good. Dad is okay._ _He promised. He promised!_ Izuku laid down beside the man, eyes pointed up at the unmoving face. _He is okay…_ Izuku closed his eyes, pressing his forehead against Dad’s leg. _Breathe…_ He felt his hand twitch. _Breathe. BrEaThE._ Izuku grabbed Dad’s pant leg. His muscles began to tense. _Please!_

“Merry Christmas.” Izuku flinched. A hand found his back, rubbing in circles, soothing his breathing. He glanced up at his father through watery eyes. The man smiled down at him. “Why the long face? We have a very happy day ahead of us.” The teen let out a watery chuckle. “Sorry, I felt it would scare you more if I immediately moved.” Viridian eyes closed.  _ He always knows me... _ Izuku is grateful for his father, truly. He always knows how to handle him.

* **DING DONG** *

He jumped, jolting up. With a chuckle, Dad got out of bed. “It’s just Nemuri and Hizashi. Are you ready for  _ real _ Christmas?” The teen took a deep breath before smirking. “Of course. Who do you th- think I am?” He mentally winced as his voice broke. The two left Dad’s bedroom, Chip following along with Umbreon and Absol who Izuku didn’t notice before. “Doom,” he looked over at Smokey who was leaving his own room. With a shaking hand, he reached up and pet his pokemon. It had gotten easier over time and with training with the Houndoom and now he can walk and talk with Smokey without much fear at all. But in certain instances, like when his mind seems to betray him, Izuku has a hard time smiling at Smokey.

“Hey, buddy!” Izuku looked over at the end of the hallway. Nemuri waved inside. “Merry Christmas!” He put a wobbly smile on his face. “M- Merry-”

\-----

_ ‘Me~rry Chr~istmas, A~ka~ta~ni!’ _

\-----

His jaw sharply shut, teeth clattering together with an audible * **snap** *. Her face softened. Izuku stormed past, head down. “Merry,” he mumbled, unable to find it in himself to finish the phrase. His feet fell short when he saw the tree on the actual morning. There were boxes and shapes wrapped under it, all different colors and sizes, red and green and white and gold and everything! Dad sat on the couch and patted beside him. “Come on, you know you gotta open presents on Christmas morning to start off the day.”

Izuku narrowed his green eyes at his father. They held eye contact for a good minute, Nemuri taking her own seat in the loveseat, before Izuku inched forward and sat on the other end of the couch out of arm's reach. It was better that way. Safer that way.  _ Okay _ that way. “Right!” Nemuri stood and walked over to the tree. She took a few boxes and made her way over to them. Fooooor Sho,” she handed him a stack. “And…” she got a few more and held them out, “for Izu!”

Did he look at the boxes? No. He looked at the hands holding them. When the woman moved, he tensed a little. The boxes were sat next to him and Nemuri collected a few more gifts from under the tree. “And these are for me!” she exclaimed, sitting again. “Now, since your father is such a debby downer, I, the great Kayama Nemuri,” she placed a hand on her chest, “will explain to you the activities of Christmas.”

_ They are trying so hard _ , he realizes.  _ Acting goofy, decorating playfully, even the pokemon are being all cheerful. Is this how Christmas is supposed to be? _ Smokey was sitting under his feet with Absol. Chip sat by Izuku’s side protectively tense. Umbreon and Seviper were with Liepard and Butterfree next to Nemuri. He and Chip are the only scared ones. But why shouldn’t they be scared? After all, it is Christmas. 

“So, first things first,” Nemuri continues, “opening presents is something we always do, even before me and Sho started dating, though we used to do this with Hiz-” She stops. Rather recently, Izuku has started calling Yamada by his first name, Hizashi, but taking in Izuku’s obviously disturbed mental state, Nemuri seems to think better of saying the name out loud, “- Yamada,” she continues seamlessly, “but this is a family affair!” That makes Izuku smile just a bit more. Mr. Midoriya would never do this with Mrs. Midoriya around. “After that it is a strict breakfast of none other than waffles and bacon! And then Christmas movies galore and lazing around and enjoying our gifts to the fullest of our abilities! Sounds funs, huh?” … “Right! We are taking turns, so as a demonstration, Shouta, how about you open one of your gifts first?”

The man shrugged. “I suppose. But it is  _ really nothing more than _ unwrapping the paper.” Ha. Izuku and Chip watch and wait as Dad begins to open a green wrapped box. What will come out? A whip? A lighter? Metal-knuckled gloves? It was… a small flashlight on a headband...

_ What on earth can that do? Blind me again? _

“I know how much you like your late night reading, Sho,” Nemuri explains, “so now you can strap that to your forehead and read with hands free!” The man smirks. “That I do. Thanks, Nemuri.” He looks over at Izuku. “Your turn.”

Well, Izuku and Chip are mega confused. Seriously? What on earth were they getting at? But they were waiting so they had to do something. They needed to act before they did. Doing the only apparently ‘normal’ thing to do in this situation, Izuku took a small red box from the top of his stack and opened it slowly, cautiously. He leaned back a bit as the last of the tape unstuck from the mystery torture device below.

Ah. Yes. The oh so terrifying torture device of a pocket sewing kit!

**DUH DUH DUUUUUUUH!**

Izuku pursed his lips and took a long, hard blink. “A good designer always has a sewing kit on hand,” Dad pipes up. “That one has a few colors of thread, different buttons, and a couple of needles and a thimble just in case something happens and you need to sow something up real quick. It should fit in the everyday pant pocket.”

Izuku couldn’t handle this. The greenette was going crazy in anticipation of the worst. He glared over at the black-eyed man. “ _ So? _ ” he hissed. “ _ What is this really for? _ ”

“Just as I said,” Dad met him head on, unphased.

“I thought you said I shouldn’t be putting more holes in myself.”

“You shouldn’t.”

“So you putting them in is different?”

“I won’t.”

“But you will give me the means to do this? A new mind trick?”

“It’s not.”

“I won’t be fooled.”

“You aren’t being fooled.”

Nemuri bursts out laughing, startling the two from their less-than-cheerful banter. “You two are a hoot! Nothing is wrong with that, Izuku! Calm down! Next you are going to say a pillow will drown you!” The greenette blushed. He looked down at the three remaining presents for him. One just so happens to be very ominously pillow-shaped.

Lo and behold, it was a pillow. A big, fluffy, green pillow with fur. Izuku found himself loving soft things and once he started sleeping in an actual bed, he found that he  _ loved _ pillows. Any type, just so long as it was soft. He also got some fabric he had been looking at online for one of his assignments and a new sketchbook. He got a few small cute little animal patches to sew on clothing too. Chip got some pokemon-safe fur gel and a black cloak-like garment. Dad and Nemrui and the other pokemon also got cool stuff! They stared at the present in shock. These were all things they genuinely wanted.  _ Why? _

“Finally it is time for us to open our gifts from Izuku and Chip!” Nemuri announced. His head shot up. For the first time that day, or in the past few days, he felt excitement boil up in him because despite his own misfortunes with Christmas’s past, he did know what others expected from Christmas and he wanted to give them something they would like and enjoy. “I call first!” Nemuri raised her hand.

* **riiiiiiiip** * “Too late,” Dad said. He held a piece of wrapping paper in his hand. Nemuri pouted. “Shooooo! Fine, fine, what did you get?!” Izuku found himself curling tightly into a ball, eyes squeezing shut.

…

…

…

“I like it.” He peaked one eye open. Dad held up a tie, the first one, or the first semi-good one, Izuku had made. There were a few screw-ups stored away in the sewing room closet never to see the light of day again. It was a deep crimson, a color Izuku thought would look good on Dad. “My turn!” Nemuri ripped open her own present from Izuku, Chip, and Smokey, who had been helping out as an extra table or claw from time to time. “Pretty!” They were a pair of crimson gloves, matching Dad’s own tie color. She winked at Izuku. “And sexy.” He snorted.  _ That _ was the Nemuri he knew. She smiled at him. “Thanks, you three.”

He blushed and looked down. Well now he felt stupid for getting all riled up.  _ Nothing _ happened. They simply opened… presents.

And the waffles were so good! And the movies were so corny! And the nap they had was so peaceful! It was so strange… He wasn’t being thrown against the wall and fire wasn’t creeping up his skin. He wasn’t screaming in pain and his face was rather peaceful as a contrast to the normal contortion of pain it usually would have on this day. And at six in the evening, he and Dad loaded up into the car because Yaoyorozu was hosting a Christmas party at her house for the class. Dad and Nemuri were having a little bit of a date night. It was so  _ different _ . But Izuku thinks that maybe that is okay? It’s definitely not bad.

“What are you thinking about?” Uraraka asks as they wait for their turn in the game. There were a few here and there, each student deciding what games they preferred from the Yaoyorozu’s rather expansive collection. He never did take them as the board game type, more like the stereotypical poker type, but here they were, rolling dice and raising empires. 

He looks down at the cup of green punch in his hand and smiles. “I think I like this version of Christmas,” he responded. No one commented at the game which was him, Todoroki, Ash, Hitoshi, Denki, and Bakugou, but they all heard it and understood. In each of their right ears was a dark green pearl earring, never removed from any of them aside from hero training. It was comforting. “This is my first Christmas party,” Izuku muses half to himself as he rolls the dice and moves his piece. “How do you like it?” Hitoshi asks. “Not a shut in anymore, huh?” A few blanch at his boldness but otherwise having gotten used to it, understanding the two are closer than the rest having known each other for longer. Izuku smiles. “I like it a lot!” He then turns to his purple-haired friend with a sly grin. “Fifty bucks, please.” Hitoshi deadpans at him. “Retribution for your comment just now,” Izuku grins wider.

“Dagnabbit,” Hitoshi huffs and passes over the fake bills and they all laugh.

They passed out Secret Santa gifts, everyone in the class having drawn a random name prior to Christmas break and gotten a gift for their respective person that they brought here wrapped. After opening their present, they looked around the circle of students and pokemon and guessed who got them their gift. After three tries, if they didn’t get the person right, their Secret Santa announced themselves and got to dare their person to do anything, within reason, they wanted.

Izuku had drawn Tesla’s name and got him an arm sleeve with a Talonflame on it that Izuku sewed on himself. Kirishima had drawn Izuku and got the greenette a black wrist bracelet that was thick and went a bit up his arm. He said it looked ‘manly.’ Izuku agrees. 

“Merry Christmas!”

“Merry Chrysler!”

“Happy New Year!”

“See you next year!”

They all waved their goodbye’s. Izuku and Hitoshi had video called Serena and they all opened heir gifts they had sent to each other while they were waiting for their parents to show up, Yaoyorozu letting them stay inside because it was cold outside. They had brought their gifts Serena had mailed them for this reason. Serena was already wearing the red dress with white fur lacing Izuku made her, it was the first costume she had worn that Izuku physically made for her, not Hitoshi getting it made and sending it, and she wore it that Christmas night for a Contest and won. Meanwhile, Izuku and Chip got super special fabric they could only get in Shalour City. It felt so smooth under his fingers. He  _ loved _ it. And afterwards they all went on their way, thanking the Yaoyorozu’s for their hospitality.

“There is one more present for you at home,” Dad spoke up suddenly in the car. Izuku naturally tensed at the word. “It’s nothing bad,” the man reassures him. “In fact, I am rather proud of you for your willingness today. I hope this will make it all the more better.” Izuku smiled softly, looking down at the wrist bracelets from Secret Santa. 

“You’re being all corny, old man,” he huffed quietly.

“Christmas is a corny day,” Dad quips. 

Izuku looks out of the window at the black sky. “That’s not a bad thing… Certainly better than other things it could be.” Dad ruffles his hair. “I’m glad you think so.”

They got out and made their way to the front door. There were Christmas lights on nearly every house in their edition. The only lights they had up were a few fake deer in their front yard. Instead of waiting in fear, Izuku found himself waiting in an almost eager hesitation for Dad to open the door, an eagerness he doesn’t remember every feeling for a Christmas ‘present’ before. Dad unlocked it and the four walked in, Chip and Umbreon having been out of their pokeballs. “Izuku, I know we have talked about it before,” Dad started. Nemuri came out of the hallway. Something on her left hand flashed in the light: a diamond ring. 

“ **For next Christmas** ,” the raven-haired man wrapped his arm around Nemuri’s waist, “ **how about the early Christmas present of a mother?** ”

Izuku and Chip stared at the two for a long while. So many things went through their minds. The good, the bad. Christmas? When was the last time he had a Christmas with his ‘mother’? A  _ real _ Christmas with a  _ real _ mother. Nemuri? Tears filled those viridian orbs. Out of all of the presents he could have received this Christmas, being them punches and flames or pillows and fabric, Izuku thinks that a mother- NO, that the gift of a  _ family _ might have been the greatest one he could have ever received and so… he smiled.

Because it’s Christmas. Christmas means setting up a  _ real _ tree and opening  _ real _ presents. It’s eating a warm meal and celebrating with friends and family alike. It’s about sitting down with those you love most and realizing just how much you have and that the presents don’t really matter at all. What matters is those you celebrate it with. It’s the smiles and the joy and the laughter. Christmas is…

Christmas is okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Howdy, Readers! It's Krumble!
> 
> Merry Christmas! It's a few days late but I wanted to give y'all a few days to spend time with your families instead of reading some fanfiction online.
> 
> I also wanted to apologize for the rather late update. Some rather unsavory things have taken place on my side of the screen and I suddenly had to drop this for a week or two, if you didn't notice. ;) Everything is fine! I promise! In fact, I plan on coming back to this real soon in the new year as next year I think things will even out for me so you can definitely expect that! I don't know if the updates will be as frequent but I will definitely be updating.
> 
> Well, with that being said, I wish you all the Merriest of Christmases and the Happiest of New Years from this side of the screen!
> 
> Sincerely,  
> with lots of love,  
> your author,  
> Krumble.
> 
> =^-^=


	21. Mid-Term Exams

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku returns to school and the Mid-Term Exams are coming fast!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Howdy, readers! Well, I'm back! I thought about posting earlier but then I was like, "I'mma post on my b-day as a reverse birthday present!" So here is y'alls collective birthday presents or something!
> 
> Oh and Happy New Years!

Shouta sighed. It’s nearly one in the morning and he is still up in Izuku’s room. Of course, usually he is when he has patrols but right now it is for a different reason. Izuku was also awake being unable to sleep. It’s Monday morning, early Monday morning, and Izuku is nervous. His dark thoughts are protruding his peaceful night and this is the first time he made use of Shouta’s promise to be there if Izuku comes to him.

\-----

_‘Absol.’_

_Shouta sighed, opening his eyes. He sits up in bed and turns on his lamp. ‘Okay, Absol, what do you want?’ The pokemon was by his bedroom door sniffing it. He pawed at it and looked back at Shouta. The man sighed and got out of bed, joints popping. He crossed the room and opened the door. He blinked once. Twice. Three times._

_Izuku stood there, head down, fist raised but not moving, body shaking despite being frozen still._

_‘Izuku?’_

_Viridian eyes looked up at him and, oh, he’s crying._

\-----

It all boiled down to wanting to watch over what Shouta would do in the morning and how he’d wake the boy up. Apparently the way Mr. Midoriya would wake Izuku up in the mornings wasn’t exactly pleasant. Izuku has an alarm clock but it was something that Izuku couldn’t shake from his mind. Shouta glances over at the notebook and paper on the floor of the room. The side was wrinkled and it looked as though Izuku had just been writing that forsaken word on it before he stopped and came to Shouta.

He swallows a sad sigh and continues to comb his hands through his son’s hair. Chip had fallen asleep a bit ago, sleeping on Houn- Smokey’s back who was curled up next to Shouta and Izuku on the bed. He took nearly all of it but the greenette didn’t seem to mind, instead he faced the pokemon and held onto it as though his life depended on it.

Shouta doesn’t think he understands the attachment Izuku has to the pokemon and part of him thinks it’s the separation anxiety. He supposes that it is fine.

Shouta was just nodding off himself when Izuku finally fell asleep. He really didn’t feel like moving. Seviper coiled up around Izuku’s bedside table and turned off the lamp and like that Shouta fell asleep.

____________________________

_It’s okay. It’s okay. It’s okay._

Izuku watches the clock hands tick in the teacher’s lounge. He came early with Dad today, like usual, sort of. “You need to go at some point, little listener,” Yamada commented. Class starts in five minutes. Izuku fiddles with the bottom earring in his right ear. He doesn’t want to go. But he does. But he doesn’t. Ahhhhhhh.

Another minute ticks by.

Izuku takes a deep breath. _It’s okay_ . He stands. “Come on, Chip.” The Eevee whimpers, not wanting to leave. Izuku tries to give the best smile he can. “I- It’s ok-” he stops and glances over at Dad who sits at his desk. The raven-haired man levels him with a stare. He needs to stop. He needs to stop. He _needs_ to stop! But it makes him anxious. What else is there if it’s not okay? What else is there?! Dad walks over and crouches by him, taking Izuku’s hand in one of his own and placing the other on Chip’s head. 

“Calm down,” his words are calm as if everything is alright. And it is. Because Dad is okay. Dad is okay. Dad is _okay_.

With a thick gulp, Izuku nods and with that, he and Chip leave for class. Never before had the walk from the teacher’s lounge to Class 1-A felt so long. So, so painfully long. When he arrived at the door, he couldn’t hear but a whisper in the class. Usually it is so loud even from the outside at the start of the day. _Be still my beating heart_. Izuku tries to muster the same confidence he had before everything fell apart. He has his earrings, his chains, his glasses, his white button-up unbuttoned, his blazer stores away, and his black long-sleeve shirt underneath. He even has his hair gelled back and yet… and yet he is still so… scared.

* **tap** *

Izuku practically jumps out of his skin with a startled screech when something touches his shoulder. He spins around so fast he gets whiplash. A yellow haired boy stares back at him in shock. “You good? You’ve been standing there for a while.” It takes a second before Izuku realizes who it is. “Kaminari?” The boy grins. “In the flesh! Welcome back, my dude!” Izuku lets out a sigh of relief before gently whapping the boy on the shoulder.

“You scared the bejeezus out of me!” Viridian eyes landed on the dark green pearl in Kaminari’s right ear. “I like your piercing, by the way,” he comments. “Thanks!” The two enter together. There are quite a few people surprisingly. It was so quiet that Izuku thought there had to only be three or four but no, most everyone was here. Did everyone just lose their voices or something? Not that Izuku minds. He felt calmer with everyone else being so calm.

“Izuku!” Ash waved him over. Eyes turned to him, he knows they do. It makes him feel self-conscious. He has to wonder what his classmates are thinking about him now. Nevertheless, with a slouch Izuku crosses the room and joins his friends. Hitoshi lightly punches his shoulder. “Welcome back, Flunkie.” The greenette rolls his eyes. “You know I never liked school anyway,” he jokes. _This is fine. This is okay._

“You too?” Izuku looks at Hitoshi’s ears. His right ear had a dark green pearl just like Kaminari. Hitoshi hums. “I suppose.” “Oh! Oh!” Ash waves him. “Me too!” He proudly presents his pearl as if it was a trophy.

“Welcome back, Izuku!” Uraraka came bounding over. Izuku narrowed his eyes at her earring, same as the others. His eyes scanned over the whole class. Every single student had a dark green pearl earring in their right ear. “So… what’s with the earrings?” he asks the question that was pressing at the back of his mind. Todoroki walked up and even _he_ had one! Wouldn’t he get beaten for that?! His friends all looked at each other. Hitoshi smirked at him. “Well, I guess you could call them the Izuku Support Earrings.” He furrowed his eyebrows. Ash slung his arm around Izuku’s shoulders. “He means that we got them to support you, bud!” 

Viridian eyes widened. He looked around the classroom in shock. Everyone was smiling at him. The door to the classroom opened and in walked Bakugou. Tears filled his eyes when he saw the green pearl in his childhood friend turned enemy’s ear. “Shut it, Deku,” Bakugou slouched in his seat, a light blush tinting his cheeks. Izuku turned back to the class. He bowed deeply, partially to hide the tears.

“Thank you all so m- much for coming…” he tried to say as loud as possible through his shaking voice. Hitoshi pat his back. Dad entered the room and just like that homeroom started.

They are going to a forest lodge over summer break but only if they pass the End of Term Exams. There is a written portion, a battle portion, and a catching portion. Dad explains this all to them.

“As I am sure you have noticed,” Dad releases Absol and Seviper to stand beside Umbreon, “most Professional Heroes have more than one pokemon. Some don’t have any as well. Most from UA have at least four, the one they bonded with and then the ones they catch. There is an assignment every year to catch a pokemon.”

Iida raised his hand. “Aizawa-sensei, might I ask why you only have three?”

Dad nods. “To put it quite frankly, I had a Drifblim but it passed away in the line of duty.” A solemn atmosphere rested over the class. Dad continued. “Now, as I said, some prefer not to keep any pokemon with them, not even their bond pokemon and that may be the case for you as well. That does not change the fact that this is an assignment for the exams. You will take the written portion and then the battle portion which the details of that will be hidden until the day of. After those, whether you pass or not, you will go on a journey for the rest of the month before the forest camp, or until you catch one, to catch a pokemon. If you do not want to keep it then you can just take a picture or something. I would urge you all to think about which would work the best with your quirk and your current pokemon. Don’t just choose it because it is cute or whatever. That is all-”

“Hey now, Eraser!” Kayama stormed in. “You didn’t even tell them the best part!” She turned with a big smile. “As the only one who seems to care about aesthetics here,” if her provocative costume is anything to go by, “I put in the request that if you wish to go to another region for your pokemon catch adventures, you can! Now, you will have to tell us by next week if you want to because we do need to get that set up beforehand.”

Dad sighed. “Are you done?” She grinned. “I am. Ta ta!” Izuku watched her leave. One would not be able to tell that they are dating.

“Catching a pokemon, huh?” Uraraka mused as they walked to lunch. “If I had to choose, I think I would like to stick with my fairy types or like my spacey theme.”

“The exams are still a month away,” Hitoshi states.

Ash punches the air. “Heck yeah! I am so going back to Kanto! I haven’t seen Mom in a while.”

“What would you like?” Izuku looked up at Lunchrush. _What?_ Oh, this is a dilemma. Izuku has never been in a lunch line before but Dad insists that he eat lunch at least. Strange to have someone caring if he eats or not aside from enough to keep him alive. He looks over at Hitoshi. “U- Um…” His friend pats his shoulder and points at the mat on the counter that lists a few lunch options. It’s a tad embarrassing to be honest. Izuku ends up with A Lunch. It is a bit surreal to be back at school, Izuku thinks. He sits at the table with his friends like always and it was like nothing ever happened which is nice. He’s glad they aren’t bringing it up. He just wants it all to go away.

____________________________

Hitoshi glances over at Izuku. He looks tired and you know what? Hitoshi can’t blame him. He is trying to move as slowly as possible because any sudden movement seems to cause Izuku to flinch. Well, his fingers twitch at least. The others have noticed too.

It’s an open wound. 

To be honest, Hitoshi wasn’t all that shocked about the whole trial. He had been suspicious of Izuku’s less-than-positive home life for many years now. What he was startled by was the whole mental part, the damage that was spread out throughout the entire family. The daughter might have been the only sane one but after that whole blow up she had to be shaken up.

“U- Um, Hitoshi?” Izuku tapped his arm lightly. It was so strange hearing Izuku so timid. Is this what he is really like underneath all of that facade he put on. It’s kind of sad and the worst part is that Hitoshi is watching Izuku struggle to pull back out that confidence but it’s just no longer there. It’s like he was thrown through a mental shredder and spat back out. Hitoshi has known Izuku for a long time now and this just didn’t fit the boy. He wishes he knew how to help Izuku smile again because that fake turning up of the corners of his mouth he has been giving everyone all day is a sad excuse for one and everyone knows it.

“What is it?” he asks. Izuku holds out a piece of paper. “Could you send a picture of this to Selena and ask if it is okay?” Hitoshi takes the paper and much to his surprise it is another contest costume. “You are designing again?” he questions. Izuku doesn’t respond. Hitoshi supposes that sounded a bit skeptical. Anything he says nowadays might sound that way in the mess that Mr. Midoriya made of Izuku’s mind. “That’s great,” Hitoshi is quick to say. “You were always the happiest when designing.” Viridian eyes glance up at him from behind round glasses. “Yeah, I suppose.” _There it is again, that brief switch when Izuku realizes he isn’t acting like everything is okay and feels like he needs to act again._ It makes Hitoshi so angry to see his best friend in this state.

He might be able to fix this but Hitoshi swears he will fight tooth and nail to see Izuku smile again.

____________________________

“We should have a study group,” Yaoyorozu suggested as they packed up for class.

Izuku listened as his classmates joined in. “Izuku, what about you?” Kaminari asked. He glanced over at the boy and back down at his bag. “I don’t think I’d be allowed to,” he replied. Dad stopped by the door to the class. “Why wouldn’t you be?”

Izuku looked up at the man. They held eye contact for a while, tension filling the room. Dad sighed. “Things are different now, Izuku. Go hang out with your friends.” He looked over at Yaoyorozu. “He’ll be coming.” And with that, Dad left for the teacher’s lounge. Izuku looked over at the black haired girl and _beamed_. “I’ll be coming!”

He didn’t notice the mental wince everyone had at how happy he was about that.

And he was! When he went home, though, it was almost natural for him to just drop any glee he had from the day. He followed the coming home procedure. He went to the closet and opened it but there was nothing there. It shouldn’t have made him anxious. It should have made him feel relieved. It didn’t. Dad was still at school and yet Izuku subconsciously looked over his shoulder expecting to see a black haired man with black eyes but there was none. A shiver went down his spine. Chip whimpered. There were so many things going through his mind. The house creaked with the wind. Mistaking it for Dad, Izuku grabbed Chip by the tail and yanked them into the closet. The next best option. Closing the door, Izuku and Chip were trapped in the darkness once more.

It barely registered to him that Dad wouldn’t lock him up like Mr. Midoriya did. It was just natural.

\-----

_‘What are you going to do today?’_

_‘Go to UA.’_

_‘And?’_

_‘Make a good name.’_

_‘After?’_

_‘Come straight back.’_

_Mr. Midoriya nodded. ‘And what won’t you be doing today’_

_‘Skipping.’_

_‘And?’_

_‘I won’t tell anyone…’_

_‘Why not?’_

_Izuku grit his teeth. ‘Because if I do…’_

_‘I’ll kill each and every one of your precious friends.’_

\-----

He couldn’t protect anyone though. It was all for naught!

_Try harder._

_Do better._

_Be better._

And at the end of the day:

_OBEY._

So he waited. He waited and waited and waited because it was safer to already be in the place Mr. Midoriya wanted him to be when the man got home than to not be. After all, Izuku’s room belongs to Inha now. It has for years. So it’s better this way in the dark. It’s where he thrives. Izuku and Chip know the dark like the back of their hand/paw. They know the loneliness like a close friend. It’s better this way.

_It’s okay this way._

Eventually, he heard the sound of the front door unlocking. His heart pounded in his chest. It opened. “Izuku! Chip! We’re home!” D- _Mr. Midoriya_ \- d’s voice echoed through the house. Both froze. “Izuku?” The sound of pokeballs opening. Sev- _Smokey-_ was released. As well as probably Umb- _Growlithe_ -eon and Ab- _Skiploom_ -sol. _They’re home. They’re home. They’re home. I’m okay. It’s okay. It. Is. Okay._ He listened to the knocks on his bedroom door, ignoring the pain building in his chest as he held his breath. “Iz-” _Akatani_ “-uku? Chip?” _It’s okay. It’s okay. It’s okay!_ He couldn’t breathe. He didn’t dare to try. He didn’t want to believe he was back. He didn’t! He was. He knew he was. The cold of the basement seeped into his skin. Smokey filled his lungs. Every single footstep from those searching for him above echoed in the dark basement.

It’s a cruel trick. Mr. Midoriya _knows_ where he is. He knows! _Stop messing with me!_

Ab- _Smokey_ -sol stops by the closet. _Go away…_ “Sol!” Footsteps approach. _Go away._ “Izuku? Chip?” _Go away! Go away! Go away!_ The door opened. Izuku and Chip flinched away from the light. _Go away! It’s okay. Go away! It’s okay._ There was a sharp inhale of air. Izuku didn’t dare open his tightly shut eyes. The footsteps… retreated? After a beat, Izuku peaked open one eye. Chip lifted his head from his trainer’s chest. The closet door was open, light flowing in. He heard the sound of the television in the living room filter in. With a pounding heart, Izuku poked his head out of the closet and looked up and down the hallway. Empty. Izuku shuffled back into the closet and sat.

He waited.

And he waited. 

Annnnd he waited.

But nothing happened. Eventually, he heard the sounds of walking again. He cowered low again when feet passed by. He glanced up and met black eyes. It was like fear paralyzed him. The man passed by. Taunting him. He was taunting him! The footsteps came back. Right as Izuku was about to look up again, something soft and fluffy was thrown into the closet, landing on his shoes. It was a navy blue bathrobe. Chip leaned forward and sniffed it before he brought it into the closet further. Izuku draped it over themselves. With his bag in the closet with them, Izuku, as quietly as possible, pulled out his homework and began working on it.

At some point, he heard the stove turn on and soon enough the smell of food wafted into the air. His stomach growled loudly. Footsteps approached along with the increasingly potent smell of ramen. That raven-haired man squatted in front of the closet with a bowl of ramen. “So,” he started, Izuku and Chip tensing, “dinner is ready. How about you two come out of there and join us?” He held out his free hand. Izuku stared at it. “ _Okay?_ ”

He looked back up at the man.

\-----

_‘Come to me and I will make it okay.’_

\-----

Izuku hesitantly reached forward and took Dad’s hand and stood, robe falling to the ground.

 _Dad is okay_.

His father didn’t let go of his hand as they walked through the house. Izuku looked over his shoulder as they were exiting the hallway. Umbreon was taking out his backpack and supplies before closing the closet door. Chip was given pokechow the same as the other pokemon. Izuku released Smokey finally from his pokeball to eat. He blinked up at Houndoom.

* **thud** *

Izuku looked down at the bowl of ramen set in front of him at the table. He looked up to his father. Tears filled his eyes. Izuku ducked his head to hide them and picked up his chopsticks. If he and Chip cried throughout dinner then no one mentioned it.

He’s out so why does it feel like he’s still trapped?

____________________________

Once Izuku started going back to school, Shouta realized something was wrong. Izuku and Chip are quiet. Way too quiet. 

Twice a week the class meets after school at Yaoyorozu’s. Izuku and Chip are all smiley and happy with their false confidence they are slowly building back up. That is, until they get home. Shouta will pick them up from her house and Izuku will tell him how it went but the second the house comes into view it is like a switch is flipped and it is sickening. On sheer habit, a bad habit that causes Izuku and Chip to mistake their house for the Midoriya household, they immediately go for the closet. On the days Shouta either comes home with Izuku and Chip right after school or he picks them up from Yaoyorozu he can stop them by either offering a game of cards or starting right on dinner.

The thing is, Shouta can’t be home right after school every day.

On the days he comes home about an hour after school lets out for the students, Izuku and Chip can be found in the hallway closet. He can’t do anything but open the door because Shouta _knows_ why they go there and he hates it. He’ll provide his bathrobe which the two have taken a liking to it would seem but until they calm down, Shouta can’t get anywhere near them while they are in that closet, not even with the door opened.

When they are finally out of it, they are more or less normal but still quiet. And it’s not like Shouta’s own introverted silence. It is the silence that came from living in solitude and darkness for years. After dinner, Izuku, Chip, and Smokey spend a lot of time in their sowing room. It’s like they are trying their hardest not to bother Shouta but honestly it is more of a bother knowing that Izuku and Chip’s minds are still trapped there. He knows it will take time but it doesn't make it any better watching them walk around like they are on eggshells when this house is their home too.

The only time they come out is for bedtime, when Shouta calls them out, or when they are breaking down which Shouta will count as a win that Izuku still comes to him for the most part when he feels his grip on himself slipping. 

But it is getting worse, Shouta thinks. It’s like Izuku and Chip are reverting back to their pre-rescued state and Shouta doesn’t know how to stop it. He needs advice.

____________________________

“See you tomorrow!” Izuku waved his friends goodbye as they all went to their respective parent’s cars to leave Yaoyorozu’s house. Kaminari patted his shoulder. “Call me sometime, my dude!” Izuku nods. Recently the yellow haired boy has been reaching out to him. Pity maybe? He doesn’t know and doesn’t care. It’s nice to have friends. Izuku looks down at his phone, opening the contacts. He got all of his classmates numbers today.

Hitoshi bumps his shoulder. “You okay?” The greenette looks up. “Yeah? Why?” His friend hums. “You seem more tired than usual lately.”

Izuku averts his eyes. He knows he can’t hide things anymore. After all, everyone knows now.

\-----

_‘Don’t tell anyone.’_

\-----

_‘I will kill each and every one of your precious friends.’_

\-----

It presses in the back of his mind. He just can’t seem to shake it. The memories and nightmares make it hard to sleep. Izuku feels like he is going grey. His eyes burn with how hard they follow Dad at home, watching, making sure the man won’t do anything. He longs for the safety to stay so he does all of the things he knows to do to keep the occupants of the house happy. He makes his own presence smaller. He goes to the closet where he’d want him to be. He makes little to no noise. Izuku doesn’t eat much so there shouldn’t be too much change in the budget or the storage in food. His pictures aren’t on the walls. He doesn’t need to be there. _They don’t want him there._

_Not Midoriya. Not Aizawa. Izuku is okay. Izuku and Chip alone. It’s okay that way. Izuku and Chip don’t exist in that house. It’s better that way. It’s okay that way._

“I’m okay,” he lie- believes.

Hitoshi looks unconvinced. “Hey, kiddo!” Izuku and Chip jump. They look up. “Kayama?” The woman in question, still in her hero gear, is waiting for them by a sleek-looking black car with dark purple-rimmed tires. She grins. “You’re coming home with me today! Hey, Shinsou!” The purple-haired boy nods. He pats Izuku on the shoulder. “Call if you need me.”

Izuku and Chip are tense in the car. _Why? WhY?! Is Dad disowning me? What did I do wrong? I go where I am supposed to when I get home. I don’t eat. I don’t make noise. I don’t exist like he wants so WHY?!_

“Lighten up, you two,” Kayama grins. “You aren’t in trouble. Shouta has a meeting today so he asked if I’d look after you for a few hours, mk?” Chip and Izuku meet eyes. He swallows. “Y- yeah.”

Kayama lives in an apartment similar to the one that Dad lived in before he moved to a house. “Make yourself at home!” Kayama chirps, releasing Liepard and Butterfree. “I am going to go get changed.” She disappears down a hall. _Home?_ Izuku purses his lips, scanning the layout from the front door.

\-----

_‘Don’t let anyone know.’_

\-----

He can’t go to the closet. It’d be weird. She would know. _She already knows_ . _Adults are a lie_. What is he allowed to do? It’s better to just wait so they do.

____________________________

Nemuri comes back into the living room in casual wear. She looks around. “What are you two doing?” Izuku and Chip were just standing to the side of the door, heads down. Viridian eyes glance up at her.

“W- we’re ‘making ourselves a- at home.’”

The woman bit her tongue. _That_ is ‘making yourself at home’? “Izuku, Chip, you don’t have to stand there,” she says. “Relax a little. Take a load off!” She flops down on the couch. They don’t move. Nemuri has to swallow a sigh. “Is it stressful?” she asks. “To live normally? Your version of normal isn’t really what others would call normal, you know.”

“I’m sorry…” Izuku whispers.

She shakes her head, sitting up. “Don’t be. It isn’t like it’s your fault.” Nemuri jerks her head. “Why don’t you two come over here and join me, hmm? You got a good few hours. I won’t hurt you.” Izuku’s and Chip’s eyes flashed in skepticism. Sometimes, Nemuri forgets that despite how close they may have seemed to have gotten, Izuku and Chip have a high distrust of adults and she is, in fact, an adult. Nevertheless, the two, spurred by fear of disobeying, shuffled forward. Nemuri turned on the television when they sat and pulled out papers to grade.

She graded and waited. Izuku would glance over at her every so often before turning back to whatever was on the TV. She sighed and stretched, the two tensing. Nemuri set her papers down on the coffee table. “Izuku, come here,” she patted her lap. He furrowed his eyebrows. “O- on your lap?” Nemuri nods. He glances down at Chip who blinks up at him. Nemuri gives them the time to process this.

She has to hold her tongue again when she realizes just how light Izuku truly is when he sits on her lap. All of that weight is only muscle. There isn’t an ounce of fat on him and that’s really not healthy. The woman combs her fingers through his hair, getting out a few knots before moving to the right of his head and beginning a braid. She does this a few times letting the boy relax under her touch before she pulls out a bobby pin and pins the side braid to wrap around the right of his head and the tip tuck under the slicked back curls.

“Kayama?”

Nemuri jumps. “What is it, kiddo?” The greenette is silent for a second. “Wh- what is your father like?” She blinks. _Ah… He wants to know what ‘normal’ is._ “Well,” she starts, “he’s really crazy, to say the least. I always woke up to music or something as a little girl. He’d be in the kitchen with nothing but an apron and a pair of boxers on!” Izuku snorted. “My Dad is really goofy, even as an old fart. He’s nothing like your Dad,” Izuku flinches. Nemuri raises an eyebrow. _Oh?_

Realization settles on her. _Izuku is afraid of Shouta._ She narrows her eyes. _No, he is afraid of the idea of someone taking the place of ‘Dad’. He doesn’t necessarily want to be though. That is why he is asking this._

“Shouta couldn’t crack a joke to save his life!” Nemuri exclaims. She rests her chin on the boy’s shoulder. “But he’s pretty nice, isn’t he? Shouta doesn’t know how to really show it but he cares a lot. He has a lot of emotional baggage himself too, just like you do, Izuku, Chip. It makes it really hard to smile when you are hurting, doesn’t it?” The greenette looked up at her. “But you’ve made him really happy,” she continues. “I haven’t seen Shouta smile like he has been in a long, long while.” She smiles. “He really loves you, Izuku, Chip.”

Though his arm jerked at that word, something about it causing something to misfire, those viridian eyes sparkled at her words.

“And I?” she continued. “Well, I love you two very much too.” He settles against her a bit, untensing. Nemuri smiles sadly. _Now if only we could get you to believe us without reservation._

____________________________

“You need to tell him beforehand but I suggest you take away the closet in general.”

Shouta blinked. “Chiyo, it’s connected to my house,” he stated bluntly. She nods. “Oh, I know, but you could maybe take off the handle or something.” She puts away the tools she was cleaning. “It sounds to me that he is projecting Mr. Midoriya onto you, Shouta. Of course, he can’t help it, but it still isn’t the desired reaction we hoped for when he moved in with you. Post traumatic stress disorder is a fickle thing and with the overhauling that man did to Izuku’s and Chip’s mind it probably deeply ingrained itself in there.” She turned to him. “In visual terms, Izuku could only see a blurry form of a man with black eyes and black hair for either one of you. When he first got glasses, Izuku was then able to see you to a more defined degree however he had to hide those glasses from Mr. Midoriya but because you two have similar features, he used the only black eyed, black haired image he knew and put it on Mr. Midoriya.”

Shouta worried his bottom lip between his teeth. “So basically Izuku sees me as Mr. Midoriya.”

Chiyo shook her head. “Not exactly. He for sure knows that there is a difference between the two of you, there just happens to be a mental image he has that he can’t shake. Otherwise, I believe this is all psychological. For eleven years he’s had the actions he is taking at your house beaten into him. For all he knows, that is the only way to survive at ‘home’. Fancy words are fine and all but it will take more than a month to change eleven years of abuse and possibly more.”

“More?”

She nods. “I wouldn’t doubt that fighting happened between the parents even before Izuku was found to not have an element. Just because it wasn’t directed at him doesn’t mean it didn’t affect him. It is too easy to mold a child’s mind. What they grow up with is what they follow. That tied together with the blatant gaslighting Mr. Midoriya subjected his family to, well, it won’t be easy to end this cycle Izuku has found himself in. That boy is a hoarder's house of mental and emotional trauma, Shouta, and not by his own will.”

Shouta frowned. “So what am I supposed to do? I can’t very well get too close to them while they are in that closet. I tried once and accidentally evolved and blew out the breaker in the house. We didn’t have power for over a day.”

She hums. “Reflexive defensiveness. They simply don’t want to believe you would do anything to harm them but they truly can’t help that. You are going to need to break the cycle of him going to the closet. As far as I am concerned, that’s just a replacement for the basement and as far as they know, going to the basement will diffuse you.”

Black eyes narrowed. “‘Diffuse me’?” “Yes,” she states bluntly. “Because that is what ‘Mr. Midoriya’ wants. He doesn’t want an ‘Izuku’ in his house.” Shouta growled. “But I’m no-”

“Mr. Midoriya?” Chiyo finishes. “Oh, I know, sonny. And so do they but in that closet, or the metaphorical basement, if you will, you minus well be so you need to remove the ‘basement.’” Shouta ran a hand through his hair. “Thank you, Chiyo.” He stands. “I will see what I can do.”

“Shouta,” she calls out to him as he is leaving, “I recommend finding that boy and Eevee a therapist. I’m not one and neither are you. As much as you want to, you can’t handle the state that their minds are in. You aren’t equipped to fix that much damage and you know it.” He looks down. “I know… I’ll see you tomorrow, Chiyo.”

It was a lot to chew on going to Nemuri’s apartment. How does one even bring up a subject like that to someone like Izuku? He sighs and shakes his head.

* **knock knock knock** *

“Come in!”

_The door is unlocked? No hero in their right mind would leave their door unlocked._ He stops. _It’s probably so Izuku doesn’t feel trapped._ Shouta opens the front door. “Hello?” “We’re in here!” He closes the door and makes his way to the kitchen. Nemuri waves at him. Both her and Izuku are in the kitchen seemingly making something. The greenette glances over his shoulder but doesn’t turn to him.

\-----

_‘It sounds to me that he is projecting Mr. Midoriya onto you, Shouta.’_

\-----

With renewed vigor, Shouta strolled into the kitchen and leaned over Izuku, crossing his arms over the boy’s head and leaning on him. “I didn’t know you cook.” Viridian eyes looked down at the poor attempt of folding a burrito. Shouta reached over and took a spoon, dipping in and getting a small bit of the filling. He hummed as he tasted it. “Not bad, kid.” 

He leaned off of the boy and went to deposit the spoon in the sink. “I- I’ll get better.” Shouta looked over. “You are already ten times better than me.”

Izuku huffed. 

They gathered around the dinner table to eat. Shouta couldn’t help but look over at Izuku’s meager portion size. From the start it had been small, body unused to much food. As this month passed it had gotten smaller. Stress, perhaps? But throughout dinner Shouta also noticed the small smiles Izuku would give when Nemuri would talk to him. It was a good choice to have her watch over him. The three of them eating like this… it almost felt like a family. Shouta was the stern, aloof father. Nemuri was the happy mother that kept the joy in the house. And Izuku… Izuku was the son, a bit timid, a bit scared, but the one that kept the two different parents together. He never saw it but he was the glue. Shouta couldn’t hold himself back from reaching over and ruffling the boy’s hair. 

Izuku flinched. He looked over at Shouta confused. “What are you doing?” The man just shrugged. “You looked sad.” He saw Izuku’s grip tighten around his fork.

Shouta toiled over what to say all the way home. When they arrived at home, neither had yet to say a word. He knew he needed to say something though because once again, Izuku and Chip went silent upon pulling up the driveway to their house. Shouta took a deep breath.

“Izuku, Chip, wait a moment, will you?” Izuku’s hand froze on the car handle. “Wh- what is it?” he glanced over at Shouta. It wasn’t until today did Shouta realize that it’s been a while since Izuku has fully turned to him. Protecting his vitals, most likely. A sad thought that a child should be doing that almost subconsciously twenty-four/seven. When did he stop facing Shouta? Laughing with him? Joking and poking fun at him? When did that casual talk turn into measured wording, a timid decision on what would cause him the least pain when they got home?

Maybe it was always that way and Shouta just didn’t realize it. Maybe after everything that has happened, Izuku and Chip just can’t hide it anymore. They truly have been stripped of themselves but even that confidence they had before was fake.

Everything was a lie from the second Izuku was born until now. Every single breath he breathed was a lie to protect himself and Shouta was oblivious to it all until now.

“I’m taking the handle off of the hallway closet,” he said. Viridian eyes and rainbow eyes blinked at him. Izuku’s face went scarily blank. “Ah…” the greenette mused. “I understand.” Shouta pursed his lips. Somehow, he doesn’t think Izuku and Chip understood _correctly_. He thinks it just went through the ‘Izuku Filter.’

Izuku opened the car door and waited for Shouta by the front door of the house. Shouta didn’t want to leave the car though. Something felt off. Like, _really_ off. Nevertheless, he couldn’t very well stay in the car forever so he got out and unlocked the front door. He decided to wait and see what Izuku and Chip would do. They went to the hallway. “I just said that I would-” “Yeah,” Izuku responded. And yet… he still crawled into the closet.

“Izuku?” Shouta peaked in. Expectant eyes looked up at him. _Oh. My. Goodness._ “I’m not locking you in there, kid,” he struggled to keep his voice from shaking. _What the hell?! He was so unphased! Were they expecting this?!_ Izuku tilted his head confusedly. _They were expecting this! No, no, calm down. Chiyo explained this to me. I just need to get rid of the closet._ He held out his hands. “Come here,” Shouta kept his voice soft, as unthreatening as he possibly could sound. The teen hesitated a moment before letting his hand fall into Shouta’s. The man gently drew his son from the hole. In silence, he led Izuku and Chip to the couch and sat them down. “Alright, I guess I should clarify. I’m removing the doorknob so that you can’t go in there anymore,” he stated.

“I- I don’t understand what you mean,” Izuku said.

“This is your house too, I mean,” Shouta gestures to the house around them. “You don’t need to go there anymore. There is no basement. There is nothing down there.”

The greenette’s eyes narrowed.

“Izuku, how do you see me?” Shouta posed the question. No response and yet that hurt all the more. “Are you scared of me?” he asks instead. Izuku’s hand twitched. “Have I done something to make you scared of me?” … “You are waiting for me to do something then, aren’t you?”

…

…

…

“Am I wrong?” Izuku finally asks instead of answering. The teen huffed. “What, did you not expect me to say attack it so bluntly? I can see through this facade, you know? Why shouldn’t I just do what you want from the start?”

Shouta felt anger rising in him. Not directed at Izuku and Chip, of course. Just at the overall situation. He reached forward and took the boy’s hands. “Izuku, I am _not_ Mr. Midoriya.” The boy flinched back. “I’m not…” Shouta hung his head. “What happened to me being ‘okay’?” There was a choked sob that drew his head back up. Tears pooled in deep viridian. “I- I’m sorry,” the boy cried. “I- I- I don’t know h- how anymore!”

The older man felt his heart twist. _Not even okay works? Izuku can’t even try to use that anymore…_

Shouta took a sharp breath. He reached forward and pulled the boy into a tight hug. He felt Izuku go rigid in his grasp. “I’m sorry too,” he whispered. “I don’t know how to make it alright but, Izuku, Chip, you can’t keep doing this. It’s only hurting you more.” Izuku clung to him, shaking like a leaf in a storm and maybe he was. Everything around him was the storm and Izuku could only do so much to hold on but he can’t see what he is holding on for. “Baby steps, Izuku. Baby steps. It won’t get better right away. I am sorry for not recognizing your fear.”

The boy lifted his head. “B- but I don’t want t- to be afraid of you too!”

“I know,” Shouta ran his fingers through the shaken boy’s hair. “I know… We’ll work on that too. For now, let’s stop the closet thing, alright? You are allowed to walk around and speak as you wish.” Izuku rested back against him. “Y- you won’t ever put it back?” Shouta shook his head. “The closet doesn’t exist anymore.” Izuku hummed. “Ok- alright…” 

That night, while Izuku was asleep, Shouta draped a blanket over the closet door to hide it and removed the handle and, in the dark of the house,

He flipped it the bird. _Stop tormenting my son, you piece of junk._

____________________________

“I don’t wanna…”

Hitoshi laughed by his side. “Have you even taken an exam in your life?” Izuku glared half-heartedly at his friend. “I took the recommendation exams…” This only made Hitoshi laugh harder. “You can’t do any worse than we will!” They turned to Kaminari’s voice. The yellow haired boy and Ash walked up as they were entering the school.

Izuku had started to leave the house after Dad to meet up with his friends. It was odd but not in a bad way.

Izuku found that, after the closet incident, he felt a bit more at ease. He didn’t have to look at it anymore in passing either, Dad having hung a yellow blanket over it. Dad was a lot more gentle too. He made sure Izuku always saw his hands when he was doing something. That way Izuku knew if something was coming or not though Dad promised never to hit him. It was just these small things that made Izuku feel a bit more comfortable at home and as such it was easier for him to relax more in general. He was never completely relaxed, any hand coming towards him made him flinch, he could never seem to shake the habit of visualizing smoke coming from people’s mouths, and adults still seemed like a threat that never stopped _lying_ , but it was getting _better_.

“Alright, brats,” Dad entered the classroom, “I hope you are ready for this. Oh, and did I mention that if you fail you don’t get to go to the summer camp?”

The mood dropped like a bomb and no one could comment on it as the test papers were already being passed around. Izuku took one look at the first question and promptly cursed out loud causing the room to burst out in laughter. Well, at least some were enjoying themselves. _I am so screwed…_ By the time it was over, Izuku thought his brain would have burst. Sure, his class had helped him get caught up on a lot that he had missed but he still felt a million light years behind the rest of them.

Well _sorryyyyyyy_ for not knowing what a fractional exponent is!

* **fake sniff** * “I’m sorry, guys,” Kaminari swooned in his seat. “I will not be joining you at the summer camp.” Izuku stared down at his paper as Absol walked around to pick them up.

He supposes it doesn’t matter all that much to him. It wouldn’t change anything. The last summer camp he went to was when he was six years old and, well, he learned just how big of a mistake that was.

\-----

_‘You know you caused your mother a lot of pain doing that.’_

\-----

He met Serena and Ash there so that has to count for something, right? But at what cost?

Izuku jumped when someone flicked the back of his head. He spun around and scowled at Hitoshi. “What was that for?” “You looked like you needed to get your mind off of something,” was all his friend said. Izuku stared at Hitoshi for a long while. A few around them were glancing in their direction having heard the conversation. Izuku let out a self-conscious chuckle. “I’m fine. Don’t worry about it.” 

And he is. He just needs to get his mind back on track. He can’t afford to break down.

\-----

_‘Don’t let them know.’_

\-----

It’s worse now getting dressed into his hero costume. He still dresses in the showers with Todoroki but now the class knows why he does. They know why his exposed arms and legs are littered with scars.

_They know._

The class meets outside, each letting out their respective pokemon. To think that many will have their second one soon. He and Todoroki already have theirs and wasn’t that a conversation topic when he first let out Smokey and the class saw that he had him now after everything that had happened. Now, standing behind him as they waited outside, the large dog pokemon was resting it’s head on Izuku’s curls. It was a bit comforting. He wonders if the Houndoom notices his almost never-ending inner turmoil.

“Alright, Class 1-A,” they all turned towards the sounds of many approaching footsteps. Principal Nedzu sat upon Dad’s shoulder as the two, along with many other hero teachers, stepped up. “Are you ready for your practical exam?”

Ash punched the air. “Heck yeah! Fighting robots!” A few of the heroes smirked and Izuku got a sinking feeling in his stomach that they were very much _not_ going to be simply battling robots. “I’m afraid not, Kaminari,” _Ah, there it is._ Principal Nedzu gestured to the teachers. “You will be fighting your teachers!”

_Ah, there it is. x2_

His class exploded, aside from the more quiet ones. “Yes, yes, that is right!” The pokemon principal was having fun with this. “In lue of all that has happened, with the attack at the USJ and Izuku being targeted and the like, the faculty at UA has come to a decision that the hero students should be better prepared for the worst and as such simply fighting robots, which through the entrance exams many of you had taken you have already proven to be capable of doing so, is not sufficient enough for your exams. As such, you will be fighting us. Let us get right into it, shall we?”

Izuku ran his eyes over the line of heroes. _Can I really do this?_

\-----

_‘Stop.’_

_Izuku stumbled back, falling on his rear. He held his head. It hurt._

_‘Izuku, is something wrong?’ Dad called from the side. A hand came into the boy’s eyesight. Sero, his opponent, held out a hand. He allowed himself to be hoisted to his feet only for the world to spin and his stomach churn._

_‘I’m s- sorry, sensei,’ he rubbed his eyes. ‘It’s just, everything is spinning. I can’t seem to focus on the fight.’_

\-----

Recovery Girl said it was because he isn’t used to fighting with his eyes. There is too much intake for him to fully process right now. He had been basically relying on sound for the better part of two years now, aside from a thin strand of blurry vision. Now, however, he has sight. He isn’t used to seeing the fist and reacting to it. At one point he decided to close his eyes completely and finally landed a hit. Dad got onto him, though, and told Izuku that he needs to learn to fight with sight again. Izuku’s been doing better this past month. A lot better, actually! But it still feels more comfortable to be blind.

_Has even my joy of sight been robbed of me?_

Izuku felt his hand twitch so he decided it was about time he focused on the task at hand. Principal Nedzu began to list the battles. Kaminari and Ashido against Principal Nedzu of all, people (*cough cough* pokemon), Aoyama and Uraraka against No. 13, Tsuyu and Tokoyami against Ectoplasm… Izuku pursed his lips. The options for teachers were getting fewer and fewer. Jiro and Tesla against Yama- Present Mic. There’s another one down. Ojiro and Shoji… Kirishima and Sato… Two more… 

“Todoroki and Izuku,” his eyes snap up at Principal Nedzu when his name is called, “against Eraserhead.” _Ah…_ Izuku looks over at his father. _Ah. That’s… okay._ The rest of the listings faded into the back of his mind. He was pretty much fine until something tapped him on the shoulder.

\-----

_‘Move, Little Man.’_

\-----

On pure instinct, Izuku grabbed the arm of whoever it was and flipped them over his shoulder. What he didn’t expect was the person in question to roll over as soon as their back hit the ground and pull his leg out from under him.

“Izuku, snap out of it!”

As though he hadn’t been breathing, Izuku took a sharp breath. Sitting on top of him was none other than his partner, Todoroki, holding Izuku’s arm out past him. “Calm down. You just got lost in your head.” Izuku felt his heart hammering in his chest. _Calm down. Calm down! It’s okay. It’s better now. It’s better now! It’s okay!_ Looking around, a few students had stayed back, hovering nearby worriedly. Da- Eraserhead was waiting for them by the bus with poorly masked worry. He swallowed thickly.

“I- I’m okay,” he finally said, pushing up. “Just got a few things on my mind.” Todoroki hummed, helping him up. “I can imagine.” The two made their way to the bus. “You know… W- we could help you too,” he suggested. The bicolored boy shook his head. “I don’t want it. I want to prove him wrong.” Izuku looked down when they passed Eraserhead. “You’re really strong, Todoroki.” His friend bumped his shoulder.

“You are too, Izuku,” Todoroki said softly. “Just a bit confused right now and you have every right to be.” They sat. “It’s been a month. Give it time.”

“I guess…”

“Hey, you two!” Kaminari and Ashido joined them, their testing site nearby.

____________________________

“Well, that went as I had hoped,” Nedzu commented as they rode to the testing sight. Shouta raised an eyebrow. “Meaning?”

The pokemon principal shrugged. “I’ve suspected Todoroki of holding some trauma or hiding abuse for quite some time now. The only difference is his potential abuser is a professional in his field and holds more power that helps cover it up more so than Mr. Midoriya’s treatment of Izuku. Either way, I wanted to see how putting the two together would turn out. I think their companionship is beneficial to the both of them. One needs someone in similar circumstances sometimes.”

Shouta blinked. “I didn’t expect you to care so much.”

“One could say the same about you, Aizawa,” Nedzu commented. “And now you have a child.” Shouta blushed. “Speaking of which, how are getting the adoption papers coming along?”

He ran a stressed hand through his black hair. “It’s a slow process. I think the courts are still hoping to put Izuku somehow back with Mrs. Midoriya if she ever gets out of the mental ward.”

Nedzu scowled. “Well, if you need me, I will provide my full assistance.” “Thank you, Nedzu.”

Shouta tried to calm his nerves. He, too, was part of deciding who would be paired with who and who would be fighting who. Shouta will admit, he purposefully put Todoroki with his son for similar reasons to Nedzu. He chose to fight them himself to see how Izuku would react to a threat personally and to see how he reacts to Shouta as the threat. Was that not really the point of this exam? Well, no. But he is a worried father and Izuku’s recent relapse has come to a halt. But that’s it. It’s just come to a halt. It’s sitting there like a thin strand ready to snap. It isn’t getting better and just sitting around is making it lean more towards getting worse just slower. He needs to get Izuku in a steady position for healing so that he actually can because at this point, Izuku’s been so use to his lacking treatment that despite logically knowing that it wasn’t okay, his mind has been trained to think that maybe this stalled relapse is okay when it’s NOT. 

Shouta shakes his head. He isn’t one to rely on luck or be necessarily optimistic but right now the hero is truly just hoping for the best.

____________________________

The layout is a town-like area. Using their quirks and their pokemon, Izuku and Todoroki have two options for passing this exam.

**One:** Subduing Eraserhead and slapping handcuffs on his wrists. While the hero may use his pokemon, only he needs to be wearing the handcuffs for them to pass.

 **Two:** Somewhere in the town there is an exit that if either Izuku or Todoroki get through it counts as they ‘escaped’ and they still pass. Their pokemon do not count, they have to physically leave themselves.

“We should think of a stra- WOAH!” Todoroki’s voice cut off as Izuku grabbed his wrist and dragged the boy down a random street. He kicked down the door of a random house and quietly closed it behind them, dragging him and Todoroki to the floor, their pokemon following suit and crouching. “Izuku,” the bicolored boy whispered, “what are we doing?” Skeptical. Understandable. 

“If we are to strategize then we need to first be out of sight and hearing range,” Izuku states hushly. He peaks over the edge of the window sill, looking outside. “Eraserhead won’t stay still and just wait for us to find him. It’s a disadvantage to his quirk. Him finding us first, however, isn’t. Well, for you that is.”

“What do you mean?”

Izuku looked over his shoulder at Todoroki. “Did you not know? Eraser’s quirk doesn’t work on me.” His friend’s eyes widened. The greenette nodded. “I am quirkless, after all. It works on pokemon moves, sure, but it also can’t stop on evolution so when Chip evolves, he can’t stop me from changing either. After that, I can use the natural element like heating up my body or naturally producing energy but if either me or Chip try an actual move then he can cancel that but as long as one of us is behind him while the other distracts him then it is pretty much void. Though, I suppose he has been a hero long enough to get around that,” Izuku looks back out the window. “And his pokemon make things a little bit troublesome.”

Todoroki hummed, moving to a different window and peaking out. “That is pretty useful to know. So what’s the plan? You know him best, after all.”

Izuku narrowed his green eyes. “Yeah…”

Sure, at some points he might, but right now he isn’t thinking about it like that. It is all information: What is Eraserhead’s plan? Where does he plan to strike first? Who will he go for? Which pokemon will he send out? And most importantly…

Who will he use against the other first as leverage?

Maybe it isn’t something that makes sense to question but to Izuku, Chip, and Houndoom it makes perfect sense. Why wouldn’t a villain use the comrade of the hero to stop the other hero? After all, isn’t it more fun to tear apart their morales and psyche until the honorable hero has to bow at the feet and grovel on the ground to the villain? They get a kick out of it! The villains, that is. They-

“Izuku,” Todoroki whispered across the house harshly. The greenette startled. He shook his head, trying to clear his mind. “Sorry,” he whispered back. Turning to his comrade and their pokemon, Izuku made up his mind. “In this type of situation, the best thing to do is to keep moving and stay separate, all of us.” He looks around at the pokemon. “Even you. Chip has to stay with me because of the whole evolution thing but the rest of us need to split up in different directions and find the outskirts of the area. After that,” Izuku glanced back outside, “let’s say we all move to the left around the wall until one of us finds the exit.”

“But it only counts if one of us exit,” Todoroki stated. Izuku nods. “I know. That is why if we find it, we send off a move into the air straight up. Not just for finding it though. Because we will be probably finding should we run into him, if you meet Eraserhead ever, shoot one up. If you find the exit, two. If you run into one of his pokemon alone, don’t send any signal. We will have to handle that alone. Is that alright with all of you?”

They all nodded.

“Okay,” Izuku cracked open his window, “try to stay in the houses as much as possible and keep out of sight.”

“We are supposed to watch damage-”

Izuku’s eyes narrowed. “Life or death situations don’t care about damage.” Without another word, he and Chip jumped out and bolted leaving a worried boy and three worried pokemon behind.

From there, Izuku went straight ahead. Todoroki, Snow, Flare, and Smokey all separated as well. Time was ticking and they didn’t have a moment to waste. With Chip on his shoulder, Izuku dived into another house, rolling in on his other shoulder.

\-----

_The greenette dived to the side, rolling out onto his feet as flames licked at his heels._

_‘Gotta be quicker than that, mutt!’_

\-----

He was up on his feet and moving to the other side of the house before his mind could register what his body was doing. He was painfully aware of everything. It was like eyes were watching him from every corner. He was trapped, no place to run. Whatever he did was under tight scrutiny by an untold evil. The more he ran the higher the walls were getting around him, chased through an endless tunnel. Izuku almost collided face first into the wall surrounding the small town landscape. He looked up the wall that towered over him. At some point, Chip whispered in his ear having seen the pillar of fire go up once but Izuku wasn’t paying attention. He couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t see straight. All he knew is that he needed out and he needed out _now_.

The only escape: The Exit.

Following along the wall running to the left, Izuku sprinted like his life depended on it because as far as he knew, it did. All thoughts of silence and staying undercover were lost to him. Blood roared in his ears in time with his pounding heart and lungs that screamed at him for _air_ blocking out all other noises, including that of the slithering behind him.

Something tangled around his ankles and suddenly the ground was coming towards him at a rapid pace.

____________________________

Shoto was a bit worried about Izuku’s mentality. It was obvious that the test was fueling his rapidly declining logical thoughts, narrowing them in on what his mind, warped by his recently spotlighted past, perceives to be happening. Shoto himself could feel the building pressure. Izuku’s paranoia was getting to him.

There is one major difference between Shoto’s abusive home life and Izuku’s abusive home life: the way they were abused.

While Izuku was torn apart from the depth of his psyche, Shoto’s was formed and built by the Number 2 hero, Endeavor. Endeavor’s ‘teachings’, if one would call them that, taught Shoto to be a calm, rational thinking. Well, so far but only to stop at his quirk usage and hatred towards it. Izuku’s on the other hand taught him to be submissive to the captive, even if he previously seemed to be defiant. Once the breaking point was hit, it all kind of just fell apart: the persona, the confidence, the overall being of who he was.

Shoto fears the same will happen to him.

Now as he prowls through this trial, with Izuku’s frantic behavior of pure survival instincts pushing at the back of his mind, Shoto can feel his own PTSD and paranoia acting up. Let it not be said that just because he is trained to be emotionless, calm, and the pristine child of Endeavor does not mean he doesn’t feel fear because oh how he feels it. Anyone would feel it in this situation. Izuku’s plan was sound, surprisingly so when he was thinking on the fly like that. It made sense the boy would seek the exit first, considering who he is, but the thought of needing to escape felt infectious. Shoto had thought of running away at one point in his life before he realized it was a lost cause with the police search force his failure of a father could summon at a fingers snap. In this situation, in the rush to get free, anyone would feel the pressure of it. A professional hero along with his three professional hero pokemon were on the hunt for them.

Simply put, it was pretty terrifying.

His years of training and moving around the house silently to avoid Endeavor had trained Shoto to move silently. Hoping through windows and weaving through the darkest paths of this small town, Shoto slowly made his way to hopefully a wall. As they did not know where they were dropped off in the middle of this town, they all had a different length to travel to reach the wall but as long as they kept going in a single direction, it’s common sense that they would eventually wound up at one.

The ice Shoto had been slowly building up on his hand as to test if Aizawa-sensei was around suddenly came to a halt. The villain had arrived.

Quick on his feet, Shoto dived into the house window he had just opened and bolted to the other side. While Izuku might not be thinking all that rationally right now, Shoto was and he knew that taking care of the town they were, as heroes, supposed to protect was a priority. Now out of eyesight, he jumped out the window at the other end of the house and immediately fired a pillar of flames into the air. The number of shots fired into the air made sense as soon as it shut off on it’s own. Of course they wouldn’t have gotten off more than one round if they met the pro hero that could literally erase their quirk for as long as their eyes were on them.

That still leaves the fact that their eyes were on him.

Shoto jumped out of the way just in time as the familiar white cloth of Aizawa-sensei’s scarf whipped past him. He mentally cursed as he turned around and saw the hero/villain for the exercise crouching on the top of a telephone pole, goggles over his eyes, black hair floating high above his head, and a hand pulling his scarf taunt. His eyes flickered to the side at the sound of quiet pawsteps. Umbreon prowled out of a tunnel between two houses. He purposefully let Shoto hear him. If the two of them were here together then it wasn’t a far stretch to think maybe Absol and Seviper were close by. Shoto couldn’t do this alone, especially without a quirk. The best thing he could do is… run.

So that’s what he did.

\-----

_‘After that let’s say we all move to the left around the wall until one of us finds the exit.’_

\-----

Shoto took off towards the wall again but at an angle going towards the right because to the right should be Flare hopefully coming his way. It was a risky move because he hadn’t reached the wall yet and Flare might not have as well so they might not even meet up but at this point he had no other choice but to run.

“Fleeing, hero?” Aizawa-sensei’s voice was dark, sending chills down Shoto’s spine. “That won’t do. Umbreon.” The sound of the shadow ball before it hit. He tried to jump to the side again. It barely missed him but the force of it hitting the house next to him sent Shoto flying off his feet. He hit the ground with a grunt. Lifting his spinning head, he saw the hole torn through the building.

Heroes might care about damage control but villains, he gulped, glancing back at his teacher-

“Where’s your partner, huh, hero?”

\- villains don’t.

Gritting his teeth, Shoto got to his feet and turned down an alley. As soon as he was out of sight of Aizawa-sensei, he let out as much ice as he could, forming a small pillar up before it cut off again. The sound of footsteps hit his ears at a rapid pace. Aizawa-sensei was chasing him down the alley. Shoto jumped, kicking off the wall of a house and reaching up to grab the top of the ice pillar. Just as his hands latched on, the white scarf of his teacher wrapped around his left ankle.

“Not so fast,” Aizawa-sensei hissed. “You are being quite pesky.” Shoto decided that he didn’t like this version of his teacher at all. He was glad Izuku wasn’t here because he is sure that the greenette couldn’t handle it. At least, not where his mental state is right now.

Two pillars of flames went up into the air in rapid succession not but a bit off from Flare. Shoto felt his heart speed up dramatically. He was right there!

\-----

_‘Is this really all you can do, Shoto?’ Endeavor spat on the shaking child who lay on the ground, body and clothes burnt to a crisp._

_‘Pathetic.’_

\-----

He struggled, trying to shake the cloth loose. His left side naturally hotter and melting the ice under hand making his hands begin to slip and his grip on the ice pillar weaken. He heard the jingle of handcuffs, his untimely demise.

With wide, frantic eyes, Shoto looked over at the villain in question. You see, at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter whether or not the abuse situations differ. The feeling of being trapped is the same at the end of the day when you know pain is coming and there is nothing you can do but plead and beg and cry out to that who is causing the pain. As you kneel hunched over before the scorching flames of the man you once called father a few things go out of the window. Pride, dignity? What good are those when you can feel nothing but the numbing chill of frostbite from quirk over use that leaves you grounded as your tormentor kicks you for being too weak? You can do nothing but surrender because at the end of the day it isn’t pride that will save you. You are at the mercy of those much stronger and much crueler than you and in that moment, as those handcuffs jingled, a screeching sound in his ears, Shoto felt nothing but _despair_.

And in that moment, Aizawa Shouta looked into the eyes of not a hero, in training or not, but that of a traumatized child and saw the eyes of his own child somewhere in these training grounds and he hesitated.

* **FWOOOOOSH** *

In that moment of hesitation, Flare, having seen his single pillar go up a bit before his did, rounded the corner and sent a flurry of scorching flames through the alley, just around their feet so that it wouldn’t actually hurt them aside from burning their feet and ankles. Aizawa-sensei was forced to close his eyes in the bright light of the flames. Shoto took the mercies as they came. He dropped. As soon as his right foot hit the ground, he let loose a mass of ice, propelling him up into the air and into the sky he disappeared. Flare turned tail and fled as well, catching Shoto on his way down on his back. Shoto pressed his forehead to Flare’s back, hands curling in the golden fur. His heart pounded painfully in his chest.

\-----

_‘Pathetic.’_

\-----

_Too close…_ He took a deep breath and leaned back up. Flare came to a halt a bit away from the wall and crouched down. “Why aren’t you going?” Shoto asked in a hushed voice. “I thought that you found the exit.” Flare nodded and crawled a bit forward, just enough to let Shoto peek out from behind the house they were using as cover. The exit was there, mocking them with flashing lights and Principal Nedzu’s big grinning face. Right in front of it stood Absol.

_Of freaking course..._

Absol looked to the side, Shoto and Flare’s eyes following. Out of the shadows stepped Snow in all of his regal glory, defiant in front of the guarding pokemon. Shoto smirked. He could hear Aizawa-sensei and Umbreon approaching fast but that was fine. Even with the wild card of Seviper unknown and still at play, Shoto felt confident. Izuku, Chip, and Smokey were all out there as well, probably holding it up. All they had to do was get him through the gate. He grabbed on to Flare’s fur and kept his body low. Snow jumped.

“Now!”

____________________________

Izuku pitched forward, arms flailing. If it weren’t for his years of ‘training’ he probably would have fell flat on his face. He didn’t. Instead, he put them out and caught himself in another roll, swinging his legs over his head and slamming down whatever caught around them on the ground. Chip jumped off of his shoulder with an angry: “Vee!”

Vision clearing slightly, Izuku recognized the form of Seviper around his legs. It’s tail lit up a bright purple before jabbing into Izuku’s leg. With a yelp, Izuku swung it off, the snake-like pokemon slithered off and hit the wall of the cage they were trapped in. Izuku scrambled to his feet to face the pokemon. His left leg throbbed, a tingling sensation crawling up his leg. Sparing a glance down, Izuku saw a bit of blood trickle from the wound and the area around it turning purple. _Poison Jab…_ He had to work quick but move as little as possible to prevent the poison from spreading too fast. “Chip, Glaceon.” “Vee.”

In a flash, Eevee evolved into the ice-type evolution. Izuku’s hair flashed white as well, skin turning paler and eyes turning an icy blue. Ice crept up the sides of his face and arms.

_The naturally lower temperature of ice-elemented people should help the flow of the poison to stop,_ he thinks. Seviper leaped at them. Throwing his arm out, Izuku shouted, “Ice beam at the ground!” At the same time as he jumped out of the way of the attacking pokemon, Chip jumped into the air and let loose the ice attack. The surrounding ground was covered in ice. Izuku and the now-Glaceon slid onto it. Seviper, without any legs or arms to catch it, dropped and slid further from them. It stabbed it’s tail into the ice with a * **crack** * to stabilize itself before turning to face them again. With this, the snake’s movement was the one that was limited.

“Ice beam, again,” Izuku commanded his pokemon. Complying, Chip shot out the move. Seviper let out a wicked hiss and dove _under the ice_ and _into the ground_ , dodging the attack. Izuku’s eyes widened. “Chip, jump! It’s-” _Earthquake._ The call came too late as the ground beneath them began to move, the ice around them cracking and shattering. Unable to get steady footing, Izuku and Chip fell, chunks of ice and earth hitting them from all sides. When it finally settled, the teen and Glaceon sufficiently wounded and dazed, Seviper burst from the ground. Viridian eyes dizzily looked around as Izuku tried to reorient himself. In the distance, all the way on the other side of the cage, two pillars of flames shot up.

_The exit…_ His eyes widened, suddenly clearing as adrenaline once more burst through his veins. _The exit!_ He and Chip pushed themselves up on wobbly feet/paws. _The only thing keeping us from freedom is_ , his head turns to the Seviper, now able to move on land again, _that._

\-----

_‘Please.’ a little boy whines at his father’s feet. Behind him he can just make out his cell door. ‘Please…’_

\-----

Izuku ignores the numbing sensation as the poison runs its course through his body. He’s getting out. _Now_. “Again,” he repeats.” Chip complies, letting out a massive stream of ice at Seviper. The snake coils up and jumps, lunging at Izuku and Izuku lets him. As Seviper’s fangs grow, shining white and dripping with poison, readying the Poison Fang attack, Izuku lets ice cover his arm. He throws up his right arm in front of him. The pokemon falters, realizing Izuku is planning on just taking the attack head on with no regard to his safety or the poisoning. Seviper may be playing the villain right now but he is still a hero pokemon and this is still just an exam. The poisoning he gave Izuku was already a bit much for the boy’s lower weight from malnutrition. He couldn’t risk anymore so he let go of the move but the momentum dragged him forward. Two sharp fangs hit ice and dug into Izuku’s flesh. The greenette didn’t even flinch.

Instead, burning with rage, Izuku grabbed the end of Seviper’s tail and pulled, _hard_. The fangs ripped through and out of his flesh, blood springing forth from the wound. Taking the tail by both hands, Izuku spun around and around and around until on the last spin he hit Seviper against the cell with a sickening-

* **!SLAM!** *

Izuku let go and the pokemon slid to the ground, unconscious. Izuku huffed and puffed, panting heavily. He leaned down and picked up Seviper. “Vee?” Chip tilted his head questioningly. Izuku ignored it. He walked over to a telephone pole and wrapped Seviper around it, tying the pokemon to it with his own body. Izuku stumbled back, dizziness sweeping over him.

“Houndoom!”

He and Chip look over. Smokey, coming from the right, runs up to them. Izuku stumbles back, falling on his rear. He stares up at the pokemon in fear. The poison running through him distorts his vision.

He was so close. So close! So close to getting out… _Why is he here? Go away! Get away!_ Smokey comes to a stop, noticing Izuku’s distress. He lays down, tapping Izuku’s toe with his nose and glancing up like a sad puppy. _Innocent._ Izuku clutches his head. It hurts. Everything hurts. _Fake! It’s fake!_ Smokey lets out a whimper. “Vee.” As if to show Izuku it is okay, he goes up and sits next to Smokey. _It’s okay. It’s okay. It’s okay._ Izuku reaches a shaking hand forward. _It’s okay. It’s okay. It’s-_

* **DING DING DING** * A bell rings over the microphones in the town. Izuku flinches back. All heads shoot up.

“ **TODOROKI SHOTO AND** **_MIDORIYA IZUKU_ ** **HAVE PASSED THE EXAM!** ”

Izuku’s heart stops. _Midoriya Izuku._ He pushes himself up but his leg jerks out from under him. _Midoriya Izuku_ . He looks towards the direction where the pillars of flames came up signalling where the exit was. _Get out…_ His heart pounds. He isn’t out yet. He’s still freaking there! He’s still ‘Midoriya’! Chip pulls on his pant leg when he stands again and takes a step forward. Izuku grits his teeth. _Out is okay. Get out. It was okay out!_ Eraserhead flashes in his mind. _Get out!_

\-----

_‘Get up, Akatani. GeT uP.’_

\-----

Izuku takes off running.

____________________________

It all happens in a few seconds, really. Shouta and Umbreon were chasing after Todoroki and Flare, the boy’s Kanto Ninetales. He had somewhat of an idea of what the ‘heroes’ were planning. Shouta knew Izuku and Izuku knew Shouta and each of them knows the inside-out’s of each other, to some degree that is. So he had a good idea that they would split up. That is why he kept Umbreon with him, Seviper searching, and Absol at the exit gate because the ‘villains’ were privy to that information from the start. 

Right as he was rounding the corner, Snow, Todoroki’s Alolan Ninetales, jumped forward at Absol, tackling the pokemon to the ground, the two rolling in a mass of white fur. Flare jumped out from hiding with Todoroki on his back towards the now open exit. Shouta commanded Umbreon to use Dark Pulse on the ground to stop them.

It was his mistake, really.

The move hit, knocking Flare over and Todoroki fell off on the ground. The move kicked up the dirt and prevented Shouta from seeing the bi-colored teen get up and use his ice quirk to skate straight through the exit gate. A rookie mistake and not one he would have made if he was going all out but this is an exam and if he really were going all out, him and his pokemon being professional heroes for many years against these teens, having previous training or not, he could probably murder these children if he wanted to, which he doesn’t thank you very much.

* **DING DING DING** *

“ **TODOROKI SHOTO AND** **_MIDORIYA IZUKU_ ** **HAVE PASSED THE EXAM!** ”

Shouta’s head snapped up. “It did _not_ just say that out loud.” Todoroki came running over to them, completely oblivious because why wouldn’t he be? It is an automated intercom system with their names put in and the name Izuku is still legally under as his last name is freaking _Midoriya_ . He took a deep breath. _It might be fine. He’s been doing good for a few days. They are fine._ “Good job getting away, Todoroki,” Shouta turns to the teen. “You and your pokemon work well together.”

“Thank you, sensei,” Todoroki bowed a bit. Shouta noticed the way his fists shook by his side. He remembers the haunted look in Todoroki’s eyes from before. _So it’s true._ As always, it starts with a hunch. It was the same hunch he had about Izuku when he first met him: something is wrong at home. Turns out, that ‘something’ was a really big something. Shouta could only pray it wasn’t _that_ something for Todoroki too.

“Where is Izuku?” he asks. “You split up.” Todoroki nods, pointing and circling his arm. “Somewhere in that general direction, I think. The plan was to find the wall and then all of us went left until one of us found the exit.”

“But then you went right when I found you?” Shouta pressed, a mini evaluation for the final grade. Todoroki nodded. “I knew I couldn’t beat you two alone and since Flare had seen my signal he knew I would either so he came looking for me and I went right because that is where he would be.” Shouta nodded. “Good thinking. There is a bus for you outside. I will go find Izuku and Seviper.

Todoroki hesitated, face turning worried. _So something is up._ Shouta looked over his shoulder. _Even before the exam started?_ Todoroki thought better of questioning the hero and returned to the bus with his pokemon. “Absol, Umbreon, spread out. Let’s go find them.”

They traveled over the rooftops looking down between houses and streets until a hulking figure leapt up as well and came bounding over to them: Smokey. Shouta came to a halt. “Smokey, where are Izuku and Chip?” Shouta asked hurriedly. If Smokey came looking for them then something was definitely wrong. “Doom!” The Houndoom jerked his head behind him before running off. Shouta turned around. “Umbreon, Absol, follow us!” He took off after the pokemon. Smokey came to a halt on one rooftop and looked down a bit further away. Following his eyes, Shouta saw Izuku and Chip running towards the general direction of the exit. Not like: oh, I better meet up with my teacher and classmate because the exam is over, running. They were full on sprinting ling: Oh my goodness death itself is chasing me and if I don’t get to the exit I am going to die, running.

Shouta blinked once. Twice. His eyes widened. _Oh my goodness Izuku and Chip are running because they think death itself is chasing them and that they are going to die if they don’t get to the exit!_

His mind went something along those lines. Shouta was just about to jump down and stop them when Izuku’s leg jerks out from under him and he falls. Shouta curses. He was too late. Thinking cautiously, Shouta went down a few houses and dropped down before casually walking up. “Vee! Eevee!” Chip was crying out for his trainer. “Chip?” Shouta proceeded casually. The Eevee ran up to him frantically. Shouta crouched down and caught the small creature. He held him close and looked up. Izuku was pale, disturbingly so. Every time he tried to stand another part of his body would spasm and keep him down. His eyes were dilated, bloodshot. He was bleeding from the leg and arm.

Shouta is well versed in the effects of Seviper’s poison. That coupled with Izuku’s fragile mental state has Shouta thinking he probably should have sent out Absol instead of Seviper for this exam. “Shhh…” He pet Chip’s head before looking up to Absol and gesturing for him to come down. “It will be fine. Seviper knows not to poison you guys too heavily. You go with Absol. I’ll get Izuku.” Once Chip had disappeared with Absol, Shouta went to face the problem head on. He takes a deep breath and holds his hands out in front of him. “Izuku, it’s just me,” he approaches cautiously. The greenette had gotten on his feet by some miracle. “Izuku, can you hear me?”

Viridian eyes met black and Izuku let out the most ear piercing, earth shattering scream Shouta thinks has ever hit his ears.

“Get away!” the boy screeched. Shouta’s face fell. He couldn’t do anything if Izuku was like this. “Izuku, breathe. You need to calm down,” Shouta tried his best to reassure the boy, crouching lower before him. Tears filled deep viridian. Izuku’s eyes looked past Shouta at something unseen. Without warning, he lurched forward, trying to get past Shouta. Both legs spassed causing the boy to stumble and pitch forward. “Woah there!” Shouta instinctively went to catch him. “NO!” Izuku slapped him away and fell to the ground writhing. His body began to light up in evolutionary light. _Oh hell no!_ Shouta slid to his knees beside his fallen son. “Izu-”

“I was out!” he winced at the cry from his son. “I- I was out! I wasn’t Midoriya! I was out!” _Completely out of it is what you are!_ Shouta stopped and looked in the direction of where Izuku was clawing at the ground. In that direction was the… _Exit._ He looked around and a few things clicked. They were in a closed off area with only one exit being hunted down by a black-haired man with black eyes and the only options were to capture him or escape. In the middle of probably a fight with tensions already running high, a name from the past that he thought he had already escaped from came back to haunt him and the only thing he knew how to do was run.

Shouta cursed. _It was too early for him to come back! I’m sorry!_ “Smokey, get down here!” Thinking smartly, the Houndoom dropped behind Izuku and out of his sight. “I’m sorry, Izuku,” Shouta whispered. He took the spasming boy into his arms and threw himself onto the large pokemon’s back. “To the exit! NOW!” Smokey took off.

It was hard to keep Izuku in his arms as the boy struggled to get free and continued to spasm. “Please! Out- Okay out! Okay! It was okay!” Izuku cried out. Shouta winced as the boy’s arm jeked and hit him in the chest. Tears welled in his black eyes. “I’m sorry… It was automated! The announcement was automated! You aren’t there anymore!” But Izuku wasn’t listening. The poison was too strong for his weak body. Shouta had yet to get the boy to be able to finish a whole meal in one sitting yet.

The exit blessedly came into view. Izuku saw it. His body lurched forward causing Shouta to let go of him. “Smokey!” he yelled. The pokemon came to a screeching halt that flung Shouta off of his back. On sheer instinct, Shouta caught his son midair and pulled Izuku to his body, protectively covering his head with one hand. They hit the ground painfully and tumbled, skidding through the gate to the other side. On the last roll, his hold was broken and Shouta lay flat on his back splayed out, vision spinning.

He heard shuffling beside him and looked over. Izuku pulled himself to a sitting position, facing the exit with wide eyes. His arms were still twitching as well as his head but he wasn’t trying to run anymore. The poison was taking its course. With a pained grunt, Shouta rolled over and pulled himself up beside his son. He gently took Izuku into his arms.

Maybe it was a bad representation of Smokey but Izuku had clear view of the pokemon on the other side of the gate, where Izuku just ‘escaped’ from and when he looked up he saw Shouta, not Mr. Midoriya. The two sides of the world. Tears filled the teen’s eyes. “Shhh…” Shouta ran his fingers through his son’s hair. “I’m sorry, I should have sent Absol. I didn’t think Seviper’s poison would react that poorly.” Izuku shook his head, trying to hold on to his father but his body was too tense from trying to run and flee while spasming to really do much at all. “Out,” was all the boy said. Shouta nodded. “You are out.”

Their brief moment of peace was broken when he felt Izuku’s chest begin to rise and fall out of pace again. Shouta stood sharply. _He needs the poison extracted right the heck now._ Without another thought, he brought Izuku to the bus hurriedly. Smokey and Umbreon joined them on the bus. Chip ran over from where he was sat with Todoroki. “Medical emergency. Bad poisoning which spurred a long seizure. Potential brain damage,” informed the bus driver and off they sped off towards the main building.

He would have to come back for Seviper after they got Izuku treated.

…

…

…

Shouta made his way around the edge of the town training grounds later in the day, sliding his hand against the walls. Izuku was back at the nurse’s office resting. The poison spurred on a massive fever. It was decided that despite his mental state being compromised, he still passed the practical exam as he probably would have kept searching normally for the exit if the poison hadn’t affected him so badly. On any normal person it wouldn’t have but Izuku’s mind was already messed up. The school had regulations put in place for him to continue school any way with his trauma taken into consideration so in effort to continue and normalize his life, this is what they decided on.

It was quiet aside from his own footsteps and Umbreon’s. “Umbreon,” his eeveelution notified him. Looking away from the wall, Shouta’s eyes found a telephone pole and around it was Seviper tied into a knot, unconscious. _To be unconscious for this long… What happened?_ Shouta walked up and untied his pokemon. He did a quick examination of Seviper. The pokemon had blood dried on his head. Looking to the side, Shouta found a small spot of blood on the wall of the town. He returned Seviper to his pokeball. The raven-haired man ran his hand up the phone pole. Black eyes narrowed.

“Izuku is…” he thought of the words carefully, “much alike his tormentor when frightened.”

Umbreon’s eyes widened. “I don’t mean that in a bad way, really,” Shouta said. “It is all he knows and at the time he was scared and probably angry. All I mean is that, and I feel that I already knew this beforehand but,” Shouta looks up at the sky, “we need to watch over more than just his frightened mental state but also the actions he takes when he is in a bind.” Shouta looks down at his partner. 

“It would seem that Izuku is incredibly violent when he is scared or angry and whether he knows it or not,” Shouta pursed his lips, “he got that from Mr. Midoriya.”


	22. Mid-Term Exams Pt. 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku and Hitoshi go on their mid-term catching portion part of the exams!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone?

_Eyes green like the forest fluttered open. A boy, hair curly and green, much akin to the trees around him, sat up. Cloaked in white was he, a robe pure as the snow. The wind blew silently between the brown towering trunks, blowing through green hair and green leaves alike. The boy took a deep breath, taking in the scents of nature. The dirt, the grass, the trees, and the…_

_Smoke?_

_Viridian eyes snapped open. Before him lay a single ember on the ground, sizzling against a blade of grass. He ran to stop it out only for another to light behind him. Again and again and again until the embers began to multiply too fast for him to put them out. The wind suddenly picked up, a strong gust blowing through the forest and igniting the embers that had so far only been smoldering. Flames roared to life all around the boy. He ran. He tried to get away. To find water to save his beautiful forest but the farther he ran the fast the fire seemed to spread._

_In the distance, the view of a pond hit his eyes. Oh how he sprinted to it . He dropped to his knees and dipped his porcelain hands into the water, scooping out a handful of the gracious liquid. His heart fell when it turned a deep, dark black. Oil slithered greasily between his fingers back into the water below, tainting it. The heat of the flames behind him washed over his body the closer they got. They surrounded him leaving not the luscious green forest behind them but only charred trees and burnt ground. A single ember bouncing from the flames into the oil was all it took for the puddle of oil to burst into flames in front of the boy and all he could do is watch in despair as all around him his once so peaceful and serene world burned around him._

_The smoke and ash tainted his white robe turning it from white to grey to black._

_His hair caught on fire at the same time as his cloak. The fire danced on his skin, melting it away to join the ashes around him. Any tears he tried to shed were instantly evaporated by the heat. His bones began to turn to ash. His lungs and organs burned before igniting in flames and imploding from the inside out._

_Before he could he cry out for help, nothing of the boy was left but a small pile of ash. The fires died down, the trees regrew their leaves and grass sprouted from the ground. The water turned clear and the forest was at peace._

\-----

Izuku shot up with a shock. His head pounded, his heart beat painfully in his chest, but more than anything his body _burned_ ! He threw off the sheets covering him. _Too hot._ Viridian eyes swam across a room he didn’t recognize. White walls, white floors, white cupboards, weird beeping sounds. He clutches at his arms. _It’s hot! It burns!_ His eyes met a silver sink. Izuku threw himself off of the bed only for his legs to immediately collapse beneath him. The fire was consuming him. _Stop! Please! Water!_ In the back of his mind he barely registered a door opening and someone shouting but it was all a blur. All he knew is that it burned and he needed it to _stop_.

He pulled himself up to the counter and turned on the facet. Gracious water sprung forth from the tap. Izuku grabbed the cup from beside the counter and filled it up, getting ready to splash himself with it. Arms wrapped around his torso and pulled him from the counter. The cup fell from his shaking hands and into the sink.

“Iz- ku! C- lm d- n!” 

He struggled. _Nonononono! It burns! Please!_ Tears leaked from his eyes. “Please!” he screeched, begging whatever it was holding him back. “It burns! Please!” Another person joined the fray. They wet a rag and rang it out, passing it to the person holding the still struggling Izuku back. “PLeAsE! It BURNS!” He was dragged back to the bed, the figure sitting and sitting him on his lap. It pressed the cool rag to Izuku’s forehead. “It b-” He stopped at the cool touch to his skin. The rag was moved down to his neck moving up and down and the nape of his neck. It ran down his right arm and then his left arm until he shivered because he wasn’t actually burning or on fire, it was all psychological. Finally, the man placed the rag around the back of his neck and went back to holding Izuku to him.

Green eyes cleared though he still panted heavily. He curled into a ball, letting out a quiet whimper. “I know, I know,” his father’s voice said calmly above him. “It was just a dream. You aren’t there anymore. Nothing is burning you.” A hand came and ran itself through Izuku’s hair, calmingly. It was so gentle, unlike the raging flames that threatened to overtake his being and roast him from the inside out. “Everything is fine,” Dad reassured him. “It was just a mild fever dream. You got a bit delirious with the poison from Seviper.”

Izuku took in a shaky breath and looked up. “P- poison?” The raven-haired man nodded. “During the exam I sent out Seviper. You happened to run into him. Two of his moves are poison based so it was inevitable. You just happen to have a really low body weight from being malnourished so it doesn't filter out correctly. It is sort of like being a lightweight drinker but with poison.” Izuku hummed, looking down. He could still imagine the flames licking his skin but it was better now in his father’s arms.

_Dad is safe. Dad is okay._

He glanced up again and met that other person from before that helped in retrieving a rag. Brown hair swayed a bit as Uraraka shifted from foot to foot. “Ah,” Dad’s voice made him jump, “Uraraka, you had left something here, right?” She scratched the back of her head. “Y- yeah! Sorry, I didn’t mean to intrude.” Izuku blushed, realizing his position. He shifted out of Dad’s grasp, sitting beside the man on the cot. He now recognized the room as UA’s nurse’s office.

“I- it’s fine,” he whispered. “S- sorry for that…” She shook her head. “Don’t worry about it! You can’t help nightmares!” She rounded the cot to the cot next to it where a book lay on it. “I have nightmares too sometimes about the USJ and all.” She picked it up and smiled at him. Izuku looked up at her. In her right ear was that ever present green pearl all of his classmates had. “Wh- what are you reading?” he asked, eager to change the subject. 

Uraraka looked down at her book. “Regions Rose,” she replied. Dad stood. “Restroom. I’ll be right back.” They watched him leave. Uraraka chuckled awkwardly before taking Dad’s place on the cot. “Want to read the back?” She held out the book.

It was odd, talking casually with a classmate like this, without his facade up. He couldn’t very well pull it up now, not when she just witnessed his panic attack and even aided in putting a stop to it. But it wasn’t bad, either, talking with her. It was easier to not force a smile when he didn’t have to and let a real one form, though it wasn’t as big as his usual cocky smirk. That one was harder to pull up nowadays. Smiling in general was.

____________________________

Ochaco glanced up at her green-haired friend as he read the back of the book. He had a sort of sad, wistful look in his eyes.

\-----

_‘It burns!’_

_‘I’m sorry,’ Aizawa-sensei shouted, struggling to hold Izuku back as she rushed to wet a towel. ‘This happens sometimes!’_

\-----

_It burns, huh?_ She remembers the trial not but a month and a half ago. _It must be tough… I couldn’t imagine going through all of that._

When she got home that day, having gone to the trial alone because her parents still lived in Cyllage City, paying for an apartment for her in Lumiose so she could be closer to school, Ochaco immediately called her Mom and Dad. They were so bewildered and worried when she suddenly broke down over the phone crying and thanking them for the life they gave her. Even if they were poor and she lived alone now and the budget was thin, she was so, so thankful for them. For the love they had shown her and for everything she had taken for granted in her life. 

After the trial, she got a good view of what that kind of home could do to someone. The Izuku they knew before was not but dust in the wind. She and her whole class bore witness to multiple of his panic attacks by now and they never got easier to see. He kept trying to come to school and smile and laugh everything off but they all saw the way he would shake randomly, murmur quietly to himself about things being ‘okay’ which they soon learned wasn’t, and how his arm would twitch if he got scared or angry. The worst part was that he couldn’t hide it anymore and she knew that hurt him most of all.

Uraraka Ochaco was eternally grateful for the life she has lived up till now.

An idea sparked. “I just started it, you know,” she started. “We could read it together.” He looked up at her. “Like, right now? I don’t think we have time for that.” She giggled. “No, silly! We could, I dunno, meet up or something. Like after school or on the weekends and we read a chapter or two or however long we have.” If only to relieve the boy’s tumultuous mind of fret for a bit outside of his daily routine.

“I mean… that would be nice and all…” Izuku looked back down at the book. Ochaco tilted her head. “So why not?” Her friend pursed his lips. “I-”

“Yeah, why not?” Izuku flinched when the door open and Aizawa-sensei walked in. Green eyes flickered over to the man. Their teacher sighed and came over, sitting beside Izuku. “The study group at Yaoyorozu’s wasn’t a one time thing,” Aizawa-sensei stated, ruffling his son’s hair. It was strange to see their stoic, hard-core teacher act so kindly and, well, fatherly but Ochaco is glad Aizawa-sensei found Izuku. She fears what would have become of her green-haired friend if he hadn’t. “If you want to hang out with friends, go hang out with friends. Unless you have homework.”

Ochaco beamed. “So?” Izuku looked back down at the book and then at her. “S- sure. Let’s do it!”

When Ochaco got home that night, she was feeling quite happy. Sure, it was scary seeing Izuku’s panic attack and really worrying but she feels like she was able to get closer to him too. Maybe she could become somebody he could rely on. Friends look after each other. She hopes that she can help Izuku too because would knows he needs people around him that actually care about him.

____________________________

“Izuku,” the teen, currently resting his head against the window as they drive home, glances over at his father, “do you want to be a hero?”

He blinks, fully lifting his head. “What do you mean?” Dad sighs. “I don’t mean anything bad by this, I swear, but I do worry about you and you cannot deny that some things aren’t all bright and sunny up here,” he taps the side of his head before putting his hand back on the steering wheel. Izuku looks down. “That and I also know that heroism was sort of forced on you, wasn’t it? You’d much rather be designing and sowing full-time, wouldn’t you?”

Izuku bit his lip. “Th- that’s not true…”

“I know it is,” Dad states. “I’ve seen your school notes, Izuku. You have dresses doodled all over them.” Izuku blushes. “I don’t want to be Mr. Midoriya,” Dad says boldly. “I want you to do what you want to do. I know it has only been a month and it is going to take a while for you to recover but you react badly to even the thought of fire, to certain excersizes, and panic attacks happen almost daily on the days we have battle training. I am just wondering if it is the best thing for your healing to continue this.”

Izuku turns to look back out of the window.

“If you want to continue,” Dad continues, “then I will fully support you. I just want to know what you want to do.” Izuku knows Dad is right. He is scared, angry, and has so many triggers that send him into frenzies he can’t explain. He isn’t ignorant of them but he can’t stop them either and it could become an issue on the field. He is getting better, or trying to at least, and maybee someday he might be able to stand before the enemy and truly protect people, just as he had thought he had been doing all his life. Everything right now just feels so… dull. And dark. It’s like he is lost in a never ending dark tunnel. He can no longer see what is around every corner. At least when he was back at the Midoriya’s he knew what was coming to him. Now it just feels like everything is attacking him constantly but nothing is actually there. How much nicer it would be to just sit and draw and sow but…

“I hated the idea of becoming a hero, you know?” he whispers, almost as if he wasn’t talking to Dad but to the void itself. “Not when I was a little kid. When I was four, before I was diagnosed as elementless, I was that everyday kid who dreamed of being a hero like All Might. When the ‘training’ started I almost didn’t understand. I thought that this was normal. I don’t know if you know this, but Mr. Midoriya used to drink a lot even before I was diagnosed. He and Mrs. Midoriya would yell a lot too. I thought that he was just trying to train me for my dreams because he cared about me. I guess I learned the hard way that wasn’t true.” Dad put a hand on his shoulder, one hand still on the wheel. Izuku took a shaky breath. “As time went on, I began to hate it. I hated it so much. I wished I could to anything other than that, if just to spite him, to spit a screw you in his face.”

\-----

_‘I’ll make you a deal, Midoriya, Chip. You are twelve, right? So in two maybe three years you will probably be old enough to take the UA Trainer’s Academy entrance exam.’_

\-----

“And then I met you,” Izuku chuckled dryly. Dad took a sharp breath. “Sounds cheesy, right? Of course, Hitoshi and me were already planning on being heroes together but that was just me going along with Mr. Midoriya’s wishes. You provided a becon of hope for me. You gave me something to look forward to and slowly that old child-like love for heroes began to come back. And then I actually started at UA and I met so many people like Kayama and Yamada. I guess they aren’t so bad. I made so many friends like Uraraka and Tsu and Kaminari and Todoroki. I reconnected with Ash and I was able to pursue designing more. I wouldn’t have ever seen this side of the world if I hadn’t met you and came to UA.”

A small smile formed on his face.

“I don’t think I will ever regain the full fascination I used to have for heroes back when I was younger. Too many things are connected to that to hold me back from it. But this, all of the people I’ve met, all of the smiles I’ve shared, everything that the hero path has introduced me to and given me? I don’t think I am quite ready to give that all up yet.”

They pull up to the house but don’t get out of the car.

“I don’t want to say I’ll never get better,” he says sadly, “but I know it is a possibility. My head and heart hurt a lot. Everything is so scary and I’m angry at a lot of things. My seizures are an issue and I can’t stop nightmares and panic attacks and anxiety attacks. I say all of this and yet the future seems so bleak and uncertain for me. It terrifies me. I don’t know if I will get better or whether or not heroism is good for my PTSD but I don’t want to give this up… I want to keep trying. And if it doesn’t work? Well, I guess that’s just another thing to give up.” He chuckles. “I guess I became a minimalist by force. It wouldn’t change much for me…”

Dad turned off the car and unbuckled his seatbelt. He reached over and pulled Izuku over the console and into his arms, resting his chin on Izuku’s head. Tears welled in the boy’s eyes. “Alright,” Dad said. “I understand. Don’t worry. Whenever you come to a conclusion, I will help you with whatever you decide. Until then, we’ll keep working together towards your recovery.” Izuku gripped the back of Dad’s shirt in his tight fists trying, and failing, not to cry. “Th- thank you…” Dad pat his head. “Of course. This is what parents do.”

Izuku sat in his sowing room that day, going through his online course with Chip and Smokey. Chip and Smokey had been brought home earlier during the day while he was resting. Things were certainly a bit worrisome at the moment but-

* **knock knock knock** * “Time for dinner,” Dad called. Izuku stood and left the room with his pokemon.

They are a bit worrisome, sure, but things are different now. He has food, warm water, warm air, a bed, clothes, and a family that loves him. The future looks so terrifying right now but he doesn’t want to give up just yet. Even if it takes years for him to come back from the crippling gaslighting and torture that Mr. Midoriya put him through, he wants to keep on hoping that it will get better. That is the thing Dad thought him how to do. He taught him how to hope again.

____________________________

* **thump** *

Shouta dropped in his backyard around two in the morning. He’d been coming back earlier than usual ever sense Izuku came to live with him. One too many times has he come home to the boy mid-seizure or panic attack. He still had to do his hero work though so he just opted for his patrols being shorter.

He unlocked the sliding door and silently walked in before closing and locking it again. Shouta rifled through the cabinets, taking one of his famous jelly packets and drinking it in one go as he listened to the house. It was silent. He let his pokemon go from their balls before approaching Izuku’s room. Quietly, he cracked open the door and looked in like he did every night he patroled, just to make sure the boy was okay. He didn’t want to wake Izuku by knocking so this is typically how he did it.

By some miracle, the boy was asleep. Chip lifted his head from his curled up position by Izuku. Shouta walked in and pat the Eevee’s head. “Shhh…” He pulled up the blankets back over his son’s half-covered body. Izuku looked so peaceful like this, like a normal child not covered in scars from head to toe, not skin and bones, not mentally and emotional torn apart. Shouta wished this peace could last with the teen forever. Shouta shook his head and turned to leave. He jumped when something touched his hand.

Looking over his shoulder, Izuku’s eyes were open, half-lidded. He held Shouta’s hand btween his own. “Izuku?” Shouta whispered. The boy didn’t answer, only pull his hand closer and close his eyes, pressing his forehead to it. Shouta frowned sadly. He waited until he was sure Izuku was 100% asleep before slipping his hand free. Chip had fallen back asleep too. Shouta left the room, running a tired hand through his hair.

He really didn’t want Izuku and Chip to continue down this hero path but… 

\-----

_‘I hated the idea of becoming a hero, you know?’_

_\-----_

_‘And then I met you.’_

\-----

… he couldn’t take this from the two of them. He would just do his best to support them and when they brake down he will be there too. Through thick and thin until Izuku and Chip can confidently stand and smile like they used to, pure and true.

____________________________

“Quiet down,” Dad huffed as he walked into class the next morning. It didn’t take long for the students to all return to their respect seats and stop talking, having known their teacher long enough by now. Dad stood before the podium, flipping through a few papers. “Your mid-term exam isn’t over yet. You still have the catching portion. A few of you have signed up for going abroad. After this, for the rest of homeroom I will be sending you to a teacher who will walk you through how that will go. For now, I will give the basics. You have this week for preparation and then the rest of this month, about two weeks, to catch a pokemon. A week directly after that is the training camp for those of you who passed. While searching for your second, or for some third, pokemon you are not allowed to use public transportation aside from those flying to other regions or on the chances that you will ride a boat. This is the sacred path that all trainers have walked, do them honor.”

He turned around and pulled down a map of the Kalos region, pointing out a few places.

“Here are popular pokemon colonies. Some are far from cities and towns. If you do not have camping gear, come see me at the end of this, we have sets for each student in need. The paper Umbreon is passing around now has a list of camping items you will need.” Chip took his from the pokemon and scurried back up around Izuku’s neck, the greenette taking the paper from his pokemon.

“As aforementioned, those of you who are not looking for another pokemon partner you can just video it and release it,” Dad stated. “The rest of this week we will be setting you up for your travels and then next Monday we will all be meeting here, aside from those traveling abroad, and then we will send you off. Lastly,” Dad held up an armband, “you will all be equipped with one of these. These are distress bands. Should you ever be in terrible peril, press the button on top and no matter where you are, it should send a signal to UA as well as a signal to the closest hospitals near you. We will be abe to contact them and track your location throughout this entire exam through these. Any questions?”

Ashido raised her hand. “May we travel with our friends?” Dad nodded. “As long as it does not hinder your own exam that is fine.”

With no other questions, Dad looked down at his papers. “Ketchum, Uraraka, Bakugou, and Kaminari. You four have chosen to go overseas. Uraraka, go to Midnight’s class. She will guide you through the Galar region basics. You will also be meeting after school with her for an hour going over the basics of the language. The same for you three and your chosen regions. Kaminari, you chose Unova? You will be meeting with Ectoplasm. Ketchum and Bakugou, for the Kanto region you will be meeting with Houndog. Yes, Ketchum, I know you are native to that region but you still need to go as it is mandatory.”

“Yes, sensei.”

“Off you four go.”

The four left.

“As for the rest of you, Umbreon will now pass out a map of the Kalos region. Begin mapping out your course of travel. You will run it by me throughout the week and by the end of it will have one set in stone,” Dad said. “For those of you who do not have camping gear, please come to me.”

Izuku glanced around, waiting for someone else to stand. It was obvious that he didn’t have any. Luckily, to spare him some embarrassment, a few students did stand. After Tanaka stood, Izuku did and then the rest of those that didn’t and they all walked up.

“Ah, Izuku,” Dad looked up as he came over, “we are going shopping later for the basic gear everyone most likely has for the training camp so we will get camping gear then.” Izuku furrowed his eye brows. “What if I don’t pass.” Dad smirked and mouthed the words: _‘Logical ruse.’_ Izuku deadpanned before nodded. “Aaaaaalrighty then.” He turned right around and sat down. _Nice._

“Say, Izuku, are you looking for a specific pokemon?” Hitoshi asked. The greenette turned around in his seat. “Not really. I already have two and,” he glanced over at Dad who was leading the students without camping gear out of the room, “I’d hate to make things harder… There is already five in the house.” Hitoshi frowned. “You know he wouldn’t mind.” Izuku shook his head. “I- It’s okay. I have two. Wh- what about you?”

Hitoshi looked displeased with his answer but let it go. “I’ve been thinking I want to stick with the cat theme or something. Most cat-like pokemon are dark types so I am going to look for them.” Izuku nodded. “Or you could find yourself an Eevee. They are great partners.” Chip raised his head smugly.

Hitoshi chuckled. “We’ll see. If things turn out that way then they do. Want to travel together? It’s been a while since we’ve hung out.” Izuku looked down. “Y- yeah, sorry about that.” Hitoshi rolled his eyes. “Don’t even. You know I’m not mad. Do you want to or not?”

Izuku smirked. “Sure. Why not?” Hitoshi nodded. “By the way, Serena wants to set up a video chat to talk with you about something.” Izuku blinked. “Alright.” _Ominous._

The rest of class, he and Hitoshi mapped out their rough draft route for travel, making plans to look up the best routes for Hitoshi’s planned catch and type later that night. After school, Izuku and Chip went to the teacher’s lounge to meet up with Dad. “Hey, little listener!” Yamada waved from his desk. Izuku nodded to the man. “Hey.” The blonde smirk and turned back to his computer.

Izuku has a strange relationship with the man but he supposes it’s not bad. He could even consider him one of the few adults Izuku trusts to some degree.

“Are you ready to go?” He looked up at his father. “Yeah.” They went to the downtown shopping strip that they went to when they got all of Izuku’s stuff for living at Dad’s house but they went to a bit more mainstream part for the outdoorsie stuff. “Have you ever gone camping before?” Dad asked as they entered a camping store.

Izuku shrugged. “I don’t know if it counts or not.”

“What does that mean?”

The greenette glanced up at his father. “When I was six, Mrs. Midoriya and Nurse Hope worked together to sneak me out of the house to go to Professor Oak’s Pokemon Summer Camp in Kanto.” Dad hummed. “So that is how you are so close to Hope.”

Izuku nodded. They entered the sleeping bag section. “I guess. I had been going there throughout the years to help her out and stuff. I met Ash there too.” “Did you like it?” Dad asked. Izuku glared at a red sleeping bag like it personally offended him.

“ _Not when I got home_ ,” he hissed.

Dad nodded. “Well this time around it should be better, both when hunting for a pokemon and at the training camp.” Izuku let go of the sleeping bag. “I wonder about that...”

It was hard to forget. Izuku thinks that might have been the first time Mrs. Midoriya was used against him but his head is jumbled because at that point it was probably still ‘Mommy’ and he can’t really process that anymore. Something about forgetting certain things out of necessity for sanity or something. All he knows is that he didn’t like it.

They picked up quite a few things and quite a few times Dad reminded him that the amount they were spending is fine. “You need to have the correct gear that will actually protect you from the wind and rain. A cheap $25 tent isn’t going to do that.” They got a bright orange tent, the same color that hunters use for their gear, a green sleeping bag with a fluffy head part so they wouldn’t waist room with a pillow, a blanket, a lantern, a big jacket, some hiking boots, gloves, and a hat, and then some simple compact cooking gear, a first aid kit, and some fire starters. Last of all the picked out a water-proof bag to hold it all.

“I think that will be all that you need for the journey,” Dad said as they loaded it all up in the back of his car. “By the way, you are going to be followed by a couple of heroes.” Izuku looked up at him. “What for?” The man fell silent. “Let’s… talk at home…”

_Oh, well, that can’t be good._

____________________________

Shouta _knew_ this conversation had to be covered at some point. He just wished it wouldn’t have had to happen so soon. They haven’t even found Izuku and Chip a proper therapist or even a counselor yet. Guess they minus well add a little more mental baggage to the kid before sending him to one, let the therapist deal with everything all at once.

“Um…” He froze in the kitchen as Izuku exited the bathroom, a towel over his head having just taken a bath. Shouta’s trying to get him as relaxed as possible before this conversation. Izuku was even already donning his navy blue bathrobe that Shouta set in the bathroom before he took the bath. “Dad…?” Izuku peaked into the kitchen, obviously worried. Shouta takes a deep breath and turns around.

“Hey, kid, let’s go to the couch.”

And they do. He warned Absol, Umbreon, and Seviper about this already so they knew what was happening. Shouta told Smokey that he should probably stay in Shouta’s room for now having been informed of this happening prior and why they had to break his pokeball to release him. So on the couch Izuku sits with Chip in his lap. His arm is already tensing up from the tension that lays heavily in the atmosphere. Absol sits at the base of the couch, Umbreon on the back of it laying down and Seviper on the arm rest behind Izuku. Shouta sits across from them, trying his best to muster a smile but he knows it falls short.

Shouta reaches over and takes Izuku’s hands in his. “We probably should have told you this right after th trial but you were just recovering so we didn’t.” Izuku leans back a bit but doesn’t remove his hands. “What should you have told me?” Shouta hesitates. _It has to happen._ “Izuku, Chip, remember how you were attacked during the internships and how they said you were sold?” The greenette’s hand twitches in his. _Suck. This isn’t going to go well at all._ “On the day of the trial right after it as Mr. Midoriya was being taken to the prison Mr. Midoriya’s police escort was attacked by those people.” Chip whimpered, understanding where this was going. Izuku’s eye twitched. Shouta takes a deep breath. “Everyone on the scene was killed aside from Mr. Midoriya. Mr. Midoriya went missing and we haven’t found him… That is why you are being followed by heroes in case he-”

Shouta shivered suddenly, the air around them growing deathly cold. “Vee…” Chip ducks his head, fur flashing between pale blue and brown. Shouta winces as his fingers go numb. Looking down, ice begins to cover them from Izuku’s hands. His head snaps up to the sound of harsh breathing. Izuku’s eyes flash between green and an icy blue. 

“I- I- Izuku, Chip, I kn- know you are scared,” he said through chattering teeth. “I- it’s going to b- be fine.” He fell forward when Izuku’s hands jerked from his, the ice around them shattering. _Dang it!_ Frost was slowly starting to build around the house and build around them and the couch. “Izuku, listen t- t- to me. B- breathe! I- i- it’s fine!” Shouta couldn’t feel his limbs. Izuku fell off of the couch onto the hard, icy ground, Absol catching his head with his own body, Izuku and Chip fully evolved into Glaceon forms. _Dang it! This is why I didn’t want to tell him!_ The lights sparked and broke leaving them in a dim light from the light in the windows that was slowly being blocked out by ice. _I need to stop him!_ Shouta slid to the ground, first having to break the ice around him to move. He reached out and took his son’s hands. “I- Izuku, l- l- listen to me! It’s f- fine! Y- you’re s- s- safe! Izuku!” The teen jerked his head up and met eyes.

In that second, under extreme circumstances, Shouta saw the exact moment Izuku’s eyes did not register him as Aizawa Shouta but instead as Midoriya Hisashi and his heart fell.

Izuku’s mouth opened. The start of a scream was cut off by a mass explosion of ice and the Aizawa household was a silent, barren wasteland of ice.

____________________________

“Wow, what happened there?” a woman walked by a house in her neighborhood. Ice jutted out, dripping water from the spiky ends under what was left of the sun’s glow.

“I dunno,” her walking companion mused. “Maybe some kid just discovered their quirk?”

The woman shakes her head. “No, I am pretty sure a middle aged man and his teenage son recently moved in.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Maybe a month or two ago? I was planning on bringing over some cookies to introduce myself.”

“I wouldn’t. It doesn’t seem like a safe place.”

“I guess. To think they live only a few houses down.”

“Maybe you should move.”

“Maybe…”

____________________________

* **Ding Ding** * Nemuri opens her phone to a text from Shouta.

  
  
  


**Shouta <3**:

Hey, I’m telling Izuku about Mr. Midoriya being missing.

**Nemuri** :

What? Now?

**Shouta <3**:

Yeah.

**Nemuri** :

Do you want me to come over.

**Shouta <3**:

Not yet but maybe in a half an hour.

He will probably be passed out or something but it’d be nice to have you around.

  
  
  


\- Her heart swells a bit. _How can he be so casually sweet?_ -

  
  
  


**Nemuri** :

Got it.

I’ll be over in a bit.

**Shouta <3**:

Thanks.

  
  
  


Nemuri closes her phone. She’ll admit, she is a bit worried. They had been planning on holding this off until they found a reliable therapist for the boy and his Eevee but with the upcoming exams she understood the reasoning for telling them. After all, they were under strict watch by the school for being targetted by villains.

“Liepard! Butterfree! Let’s take some cookies to take to Sho’s!”

“Lie!” “Free!”

By the time they are done, with the sweet smell of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies swirling in the air, Nemuri feels a sense of foreboding wash over her. “W- well then!” She takes up the box of cookies, “let’s go!” When they are just in her car or going to a friends, Nemuri typically keeps her pokemon out of their balls. It isn’t like they are doing much harm. The closer she gets to Shouta’s house, the deeper the pit in her stomach feels. Heroes learn to trust their gut when they think something is wrong. Trust her gut has saved man lives. As such, Nemuri presses on the gas pedal a bit harder. The literal glacier doesn’t quite register with her in the distance. Much like everyone else, she passes it off at first.

That is, until she hears the sirens. 

Nemuri’s heart drops when she pulls up to Shouta’s house and it is surrounded by police vans and ambulances. The entire house is covered in ice with giant amounts shooting out from the broken windows. A puddle has begun to form around it announcing that they used to be much bigger.

“No… Shouta! Izuku!” She throws herself out of the car, running up to the house. “Ma’am, you cannot get closer,” a police man steps in front of it. “My friends are in there! My boyfriend and his son!” she shouts, tears springing from her eyes. “I’m sorry but without any authoriz-”

She whips out her hero ID, anger rising in her. “Professional Heroine: Midnight, arriving on the scene for back up. Please move aside.”

The police officer clicks his tongue. Heroes and police don’t have the best relationship but the battle of authority has clearly been won. He steps to the side. “Please be careful, Midnight.” She bows. “Thank you. Liepard! Butterfree! Let’s go!” The most the police could do was try and melt a hole with blow torches that obviously weren’t doing much. She turned and whipped out her hero phone. With her title, she was able to call in heroes more equipped for this matter. She decided to not even try with Endeavor knowing that he wouldn’t show up for such ‘trivial matters’ and even if he did would probably burn the whole place down. Instead, she called in a couple of heat attracting and flame wielding heroes and before they knew it, a hole was being melted into the house through one of the windows. Once it was wide enough, Nemuri immediately leapt through.

“Shouta! Izuku!” she cried out. She shivered in such low temperatures. Sliding carefully through the house behind the fire heroes as if on ice skates, they made their way through it. “I- Izuku?! Sh- Sh- Shouta!” 

“I think I see something!” Heat Wave, the heat attracting hero, announced. Together the heroes and their pokemon worked to make a way through to the living room where a hole in the ice barrier finally opened up revealing two figures on the floor: One, a man with raven hair and black eyes on his knees before a boy, holding his hands. Two, a boy with white hair and wide, petrified pale blue eyes, a Glaceon in his lap. Behind the boy lay an Absol, on the couch lay a Seviper and an Umbreon.

It was like a picture frozen in time, all of them encased in ice.

Nemuri let out a broken wail. “Sh- Shouta! I- I- Izuku!” She lurched forward but Sunny Days held her back. “Midnight, I understand your distress but you need to let us work to get them out. You are freezing. Please go outside and inform the ambulances to get ready and get warmed up as well. Frostbite has well set in by this time.”

Nemuri knows they are right. She doesn’t want to believe that she can’t do anything to help but she knows that is the reality of the situation. “Alright…” she whispers before turning tail and making her way down the path of slush that they had left in their wake.

“Two people, a man and a teen, are coming out as well as their pokemon,” she informed everyone when she got out. She had to rely on her years as a hero to keep her voice stern and steady. “Please prepare to take them to the hospital immediately! They need emergency medical care!”

“Midnight, please come with us,” the police officer from before lead her away, face much softer. “Your lips are blue. Let us warm you up.” She looked over her shoulders as she was guided away to sit on the other side of the street. A blanket was draped over her and her pokemon. With shivering hands did she pull out her phone and dial Hizashi.

* **Click** *

“ _Hello, hello! Hizashi here! What’s up, Nemuri!_ ”

She could almost cry at his chipper voice, completely oblivious to the situation. “H- Hisashi,” she hiccuped, “Sh- Shouta and Izuku… they’re…”

“ _Nemuri,_ ” Hizashi’s voice was much more calm, delicate, “ _calm down. What happened? Do you need me to come get you?_ ”

She shakes her head despite the man not being able to see it. “N- no, thank you. Just if you have time, get to Lumiose Urgent Care. It’s-” She watches Shouta and Izuku get rushed out by the heroes, police officers rushing in to get the pokemon. “Hizashi, it’s really bad.”

By the time she arrived at the hospital, Hizashi was already waiting for her.

“I don’t know exactly what happened but I have a pretty good idea,” she explained as they waited. “Shouta had texted me that he was going to tell Izuku about Mr. Midoriya being missing. Izuku and Chip had evolved into Glaceon by the time I arrived on the scene. They were probably unable to de-evolve due to the ice stopping the flow of their cells.” She wrings her hands together. “I don’t think they have ever kept an evolution that long.”

Hizashi pats her back.

“The doctor’s say that frostbite had already well set in,” she continues quieter. “They say it will be a miracle if they don’t loose a limb or finger or something from it. Smokey was found in Izuku’s room a bit later but he wasn’t as bad as the others due to his high body heat.” Nemuri cups her face in her hands. “Hizashi, I’m so worried! I don’t know what to do!”

The man sighs, looking down. “There isn’t much we can do but sit and wait.”

“I’m afraid you won’t be able to do that,” a man walked up. Nemuri looked up. “You’re… the police officer from before.” He is a man with short magenta hair. “Hello, I am Officer Kato, officer of the West Side Lumiose Police Station and in lead of the call for this. I apologize for my tense actions before.”

Nemuri shakes her head, standing. “No, officer, the fault is mine. I am in my civilian clothes after all. Sorry my my actions. I am Pro Hero: Midnight.” Hizashi also stood. “Pro Hero: Present Mic. Thank you for serving. May we ask why your choice of words before were what they were?”

“Certainty,” Officer Kato nods. “Most reasonably it is because visiting hours are soon to be over. Your friends won’t be waking up any time soon, I’m afraid. I just spoke with the nurse watching over them. The extent of the frostbite wasn’t the worst as they hadn’t been in the ice for too long, especially for the boy and his Eevee as they seemed to have de-evolved or something as their medical records say from Glaceon. I am not sure what that means but they did still suffer quite a bit as well as the man and the other pokemon. It will be a while until the doctors are able to get their temperatures down to regular levels without risking freezer burn but even then they will probably be unconscious for a bit. I am sorry this has happened.” He pulls about a card and gives it each of them one. “That is my business card. Call me if you need anything.”

Nemuri and Hizashi bow. “Thank you, Officer Kato.” And he leaves, tipping his hat to them.

* **Ding Ding** * Hizashi pulls out his phone and checks his messages. His face tightens. “What’s wrong?” Nemuri asks. The man sighs. “It’s Principal Nedzu.” He turns his phone to show her the message. “It’s about Izuku.”

____________________________

His head hurts. His body feels numb and a bit tingly. Black eyes flutter open pen before snapping shut. He lets out a low groan. Ah, his head really hurts.

“Sh- a? Shou- a, can y- u hea- me?” 

The light behind his eyelids goes dark, the lights in the room turning dim. Testing his vision again, Shouta opens his eyes. He looks around lazily. He is in a hospital room? Beside his bed are Nemuri and Hizashi? _Why? What happened?_ He tries to sit up but his arms are shaky. “Here, let me help,” Hizashi leans over and presses the button on the side of the bed. The wirr of mechanics fills the room as the back of the bed moves up to a reclined position.

“Thanks,” Shouta rubs his temple. He looks over at his worried friend and girlfriend. “What happened?” The two exchange glances. “That is what we were going to ask you,” Nemuri starts. “You texted me yesterday-”

“Yesterday?”

She nods. “You’ve been out for almost twenty four hours, Sho.” He looks down. _I was… What…?_ “Shouta, do you not remember? When I got to your house the police and ambulances were there. Your house was completely covered in ice.” _Ice? Ice… ICE!_ Shouta’s eyes widened. It was coming back to him. He was telling Izuku about Mr. Midoriya and he had a panic attack and then-

\-----

_Izuku’s mouth opened in a scream but only the start got out before an overwhelming cold fell over them. Shouta couldn’t move. His limbs were locked in place. He couldn’t blink and everything in his sight was blurry. Before him he could barely make out Izuku and Chip, also frozen._

_Frozen… He messed up._

\-----

He doesn’t know when he went unconscious. He felt his body running down and his mind going numb. Subconsciously he knew that he was dying like that but he knew he couldn’t do anything and his mind had gone numb at that point. The last thing he remembered was wishing he could have done something different, something to help ease Izuku’s mind. Instead, in that frozen state Izuku was stuck mid-seizure, mid-panic attack with his own mind only able to see the black eyes before him.

Shouta pressed the heels of his hands to his eyes as they grew wet.

“Sho…” Nemuri sat on the edge of his hospital bed and rubbed his back. “I h- hate it,” he choked out. “I hate these eyes! I hate this hair!” He pulled his hands back, glaring at them through the tears. “Why did we have to look the same?! Why?”

“Shout-”

“Is it me?” He looks up at Hizashi with pleading eyes. “Is it me that is holding him back? Am I the reason that Izuku and Chip can’t heal? Because I look like that no good, piece of junk, sorry excuse for a father?” Nemuri pulled his head to her chest, patting his head. “”I- is it…? It wasn’t until he saw my eyes that he l- let loose that glacier… Why did I have to be born with these eyes…?” 

Shouta has never cared about his looks. The only time he did was when he went on dates with Nemuri. He always thought it was irrational to get all prettied up with gallons of make up and clothes that inhibited easy movement. He was never ashamed of his looks even when people looked down upon him for it. To a degree, Shouta liked how he looked. He never had a reason to hate it.

There is a first for everything, he supposes because right now Shouta can’t find any reason to be happy with the way he looks. 

“Shouta, that’s not true,” Hizashi said confidently. “You are the best thing Izuku and Chip have in this world and you know it.” Shouta shook his head aginast Nemuri. “I- I’m not… Hizashi, he can’t even look at me without thinking of Mr. Midoriya.”

His shoulders were suddenly grabbed and he was forced away from Nemuri and to face his yellow-haired friend. “Eleven- no- _Fifteen years_ , Shouta. _Fifteen!_ ” Hizashi half-shouted. “They are trying their best and you know it. The topic at hand happened to be about that man but you cannot blame yourself for their healing. Heck, Izuku can’t even hear my name without twitching. They are trying but a month and a half won’t make so much as a dent in their minds, not up against that topic. But you?” Hizashi jabbed his finger into Shouta’s chest. “You made a bigger dent into what Mr. Midoriya did to them then anyone else on the face of this planet. You can’t help that you have black eyes or black hair. You can’t help that they were raised by a maniac who tortured them with the same colors. _You can’t help that!_ But I know this, Shouta,” Hizashi pointed to the door, one hand still on Shouta’s shoulder, “there is a frightened fifteen year old boy right across the hall that woke up two hours ago. There is a boy who won’t let anyone near him, won’t eat, won’t sleep, won’t use the bathroom, won’t do anything because the one person he needs to be in there right now, the one person he trusts in this world, was put out of commission by him and the one person he is most afraid of in the world he has just found out is missing and could come back for him at any moment and he is _paralyzed_ by fear and the only person who can help him is right across the freaking hall sitting in this freaking bed!”

Shouta stared at his friend with wide eyes. Nemuri put a hand on Hizashi’s arm. “Zashi, calm down…” The man sighed, lowering his arms. Shouta looked down. “I- I can’t, Hizashi… Izuku doesn’t need to see me right now… It will only make things worse…”

“‘ **Where’s Dad?** ’” Shouta looks up at Hizashi. The man’s mouth opens. “ **What happened to Dad? Is Dad okay? I’m scared. Where is Dad? I want Dad.** ’” Hizashi took a deep breath. “Among a slew of apologies and it’s okays, the only thing that Izuku has asked for this entire time was ‘Where is Dad?’” Black eyes widened. “Not even me or Nemuri can get close to him. Shouta, that boy is scared senseless without you.”

The man sat with a long sigh and pulled out his phone, showing it to Shouta. “Nedzu is questioning Izuku’s enrollment, Shouta. Right now, Izuku is in the room across the hall and Chip is in the pokemon emergency care unit in the Pokemon Center next to this hospital. Izuku’s emotions are running rampid and are causing issues for the nurses over there with helping Chip. If anyone gets close to him, he immediately jerks and his eyes flash a different color which I am sure by now you are a sign of changing evolutions, something that relies heavily on his emotions.” Hizashi puts down his phone. “Nedzu has given us a couple of options having heard the situation. One, he is pulling Izuku out of school, whether it be a temporary suspension or permanent expulsion.”

Shouta gulped. “And two…?”

“Two,” Hizashi pointed at him again, “if you can go over there and calm Izuku down, he will reconsider with some restrictions and so will Child Protective Services that were contacted after the incident. They were considering taking Izuku and Chip away from you.” 

Shouta’s heart dropped. “No!” He grabbed Hizashi’s wrists. “They can’t! Izuku-”

“Needs you?” Hizashi finished. Shouta recoiled. “You are right, he does. Both to feel safe and to continue school. Izuku’s livelihood as it is rests on if you can prove that you are the best thing for Izuku and you have until tomorrow to do it before Nedzu boots the kid out and Child Protective Services takes him away from not only you but me, Nemuri, and all of his friends so whether or not you are going to let Mr. Midoriya and the off chance that you two have the same hair and eye color is up to you to come to terms with but something tells me you’ve lost to Mr. Midoriya one too many times for Izuku and Chip to wind up like this and you don’t want him to win again.”

Shouta stared in shock. He’s never been one to be so emotional, so worried, so contemplative. It was irrational to take a long time to decide things when it could be a matter between life and death.

\-----

_‘But this, all of the people I’ve met, all of the smiles I’ve shared, everything that the hero path has introduced me to and given me? I don’t think I am quite ready to give that all up yet.’_

\-----

_Right. It’s irrational._

Shouta swung his legs off of the bed. “Woah now!” Nemuri pushed him back. “That speech was all well and good but you still need to be checked over by the nurse before you can even be standing.”

“But-”

“I’ll call her in,” Hizashi made his way to the door. “Don’t worry. We will have you to your kid lickidee split.” Shouta watched after his friend.

“Hizashi.” The blonde turned back to him. “Thank you.”

…

…

…

Throwing up a peace sign, Hizashi left.

The ever present numbness in his arms was a side effect of the frost nip. It wasn’t exactly to the frostbite stage, luckily, but it was pretty darn close by the time they were thawed. They explained to him that he would experience partial numbness in his limbs and most likely permanent numbness in the toes and fingers and maybe the hands and feet but he should be able to feel them to some degree. Once the check up was over with, and on a pair of crutches, Shouta was allowed to go see Izuku but they would both have to stay over night. 

To be honest, Shouta was nervous. Scratch that. He was flat out terrified. He didn’t want to cause another poor reaction out of Izuku. He was scared of himself and how his son would react to him. But he couldn’t show sign of hesitation. If he hesitated towards Izuku then Izuku would hesitate towards him and it would be a never ending loop. He had to do this.

* **knock knock knock** *

His hand tingled with the feeling of being hit against the door of Izuku’s hospital room. He supposes that will take a bit to get used to. “Izuku?” he calls through the door. “It’s Dad. Can I come in?” There is no response. Hizashi pats his back. The two of them would be staying in the hallway to give Izuku and Shouta their space. Taking a deep breath, Shouta reached forward and pulled open the door. His eyes land on the boy on the bed. Izuku wears the same hospital gown as he does only in his own size. He sits in the middle of the bed in a ball, sheets pulled over his legs, arms folded on his knees, head leaning against them. The only thing that tells Shouta that he is awake is the small tremor in his body.

He takes a step in and Izuku’s right hand twitches. Upon further observation, there is a scorch mark on the sheets probably from Izuku’s fire. There is a still drying spot on the pillow probably from his water. He’s defending himself. He’s scared.

“Hey, kid,” Shouta crosses the room on his crutches. The closer he gets the more Izuku’s arms begin to jerk. Shouta watches as the roots of his hair fade into blue. He doesn’t stop. Shouta walks right over and sits on the edge of the bed. Izuku doesn’t lash out at him like Hizashi said he did to the others. Izuku _knows_ that it is him. “How are you feeling?” Izuku only curls in further on himself. Shouta watches the way his back rises and falls out of time, getting quicker each time. Shouta softly puts his hand on Izuku’s head.

* **sniff** *

“I- I- I’m sorry,” Izuku whispers. “I- I didn’t m- mean to.” Shouta smiled sadly. “I know, Izuku. I’m not mad.” The greenette didn’t move. “I’m scared.”

“I know.”

“I- I hurt you.”

“I’m fine.”

“I don’t w- want to hurt you.”

“You won’t.”

“I di-”

“Izuku, you don’t know that and you won’t until you look at me,” Shouta cut him off. He silently leaned down and hid the crutches under the hospital bed. “Please look up.” Nothing happens for a while and when it does, Izuku still refuses to look up. He knows his mind isn’t clear. He doesn’t want to see Shouta and that just hurts all the more. “H- he’s out.” Shouta shakes his head. “He’s not out. Just missing.” Izuku’s hair grows a bit more blue. He’s struggling to stay calm.

_He’s afraid of himself_ , it hits Shouta like a truck. _Just like I was about me._

“I’m scared, D- Dad. I don’t kn- know what to d- do. I don’t want to go back!” Izuku screeched. They were going around in circles and nothing was happening but Izuku’s breathing getting worse. “Alrighty, move over.” Shouta doesn’t wait because if he does Izuku won’t so he climbs up on the cot and sits beside the boy when he shifts a bit to the side. “I’ll be the first to admit, I probably could have handled breaking this news to you a little bit better but seriously, who said anything as you going back?” _Well, the protective services but he doesn’t need to know that._ “So what if Mr. Midoriya is missing?” Izuku flinched. “Is it any different now that you know? He was still missing even when you didn’t know. Nothing is going to change. As I said, we are going to be following you on your journey and you are already under watch. No one would dare attack you with the heroes around.”

Shouta leaned over and pressed the button on the bed, leaning the bed back up. “Izuku, do you remember what I told you when you first started living with me?” He gently pushed Izuku back against it before leaning back himself. “I told you that I will be the ‘okay’ in your life, right? Do you still believe that?” _Finally_ Izuku looked up. Not at him, just enough to rest his chin on his arms. “I still plan to be that. No matter what happens you are my son and I will protect you. Mr. Midoriya stands no chance against me. He has no pokemon and my quirk can cancel out his. He is literally powerless against me. I am sorry that I didn’t tell you before, it probably would have been better. Will you let me be your ‘okay’ again?”

Shouta waited and when Izuku was ready the teen leaned over a bit and laid his head on the man’s shoulder and he cried. 

“I- I’m so scared, Dad!” Shouta wrapped his arm around Izuku’s shoulders, bringing him closer to him. “I- I couldn’t see you! I- I saw him!” _Ah, so he knows that happens._ “Every day! I- I feel like he i- is still here!” Shouta ran his hand through his son’s hair, heart breaking along with each of Izuku’s broken sobs. Still, slowly but surely the blue faded from Izuku’s hair and his eyes turned a deep viridian once again as he let out all of his pent up emotions on Shouta. Izuku cried and he cried and he cried until he couldn’t cry anymore and despite having been unconscious for almost a whole day, Izuku passed out against Shouta.

Shouta ran his hand through his own raven hair. He looked out of the window. _I swear, Mr. Midoriya., mark my words… If you dare come for Izuku that day will be your last._

The shuffling of feet outside the door drew Shouta’s attention. He met eyes with the the woman from Child Protective Services that had stopped by their house a couple times in the past month. Through the small sliding plane that allows people to look in. She turned away and left.

_You too._ Shouta wrapped his arms protectively around his son. _I won’t stand by and watch if you try to take him from me. Izuku and Chip… they are my children._

____________________________

Most of the furniture in the Aizawa household was salvageable, only having to be cleaned and dried but things like electronics and the leather couch had to be thrown out. That being said, most of it was still drying and all of the windows were blown out and the electricity was out so they couldn’t return home.

Hizashi offered his own apartment for them to stay in as it would be a bit awkward for Shouta and Nemuri to stay at her place as they were still just dating.

After Izuku calmed down, Chip was able to recover at the pokemon center and all of them, Shouta’s pokemon and Smokey too, packed up what they could bring from their house to Hizashi’s as they waited for everything to be repaired. Luckily, their clothes were dry having been in closets or wardrobes that the ice simply covered. As for the camping gear, it had stayed in Shouta’s car the whole time so it was safe as well.

The next school day Principal Nedzu called Shouta and Izuku to his office to lay out the conditions for Izuku to stay in school in respect to his mental health, or lack thereof. With the exam and camp coming so soon, it was understandable that they could not get a therapist on such short notice but when Izuku got back it was mandatory for him to have one as soon as possible. As for during school, Izuku will be moved to the seat closest to the door of the classroom. If he feels like he is going to have a panic or anxiety attack but is trying to hide it like always, he is permitted without question to go out into the hall and calm himself down. Lastly, he has to travel to and from school with Shouta. He is still able to go meet his friends by the front gate but for his safety and for his mental stability that seems most stable around Shouta he is to do so. When he gets a therapist a few things will change depending on the time he is able to meet with said therapist and they will act accordingly because as Principal Nedzu says:

“It is of the utmost importance for heroes, before being physically healthy or having the will to save, to have peace at mind. It could become a hindrance on the battlefield to not.”

As for the looming fear of Child Protection Services, they decided would hold off on taking Izuku away on the condition that the therapist selection is run through them and through the school to ensure the teen gets the person best suited for his specific traumas.

____________________________

“So you have tainted Shouta too, huh?” Hitoshi mused. He had his seat changed as well, at least in homeroom by Dad’s command, so now Izuku sat at the front left of the classroom by the door and Hitoshi behind him. He turned around in his seat. “What do you mean?” The purple-haired boy smirked. “Not only you skipped school yesterday, so did he.” Hitoshi sighed. “Izuku, oh, Izuku, you are a bad influence on that man.” Izuku kicked Hitoshi’s leg under the table. “Shut up, insomniac.”

“Like you aren’t one?” Hitoshi raised an eyebrow. Izuku turned his head away defiantly though he couldn’t deny it. “So? Where were you two?” Hitoshi pressed. Izuku looked down. “The um… emergency room…” Violet eyes widened. “For frostbite…” Izuku whispered smaller. “Because of me…” Hitoshi took a sharp breath. “Glaceon?” he asked. The greenette nodded minisculely. “Panic attack?” Another nod. Those around them pretending not to hear winced mentally. Hitoshi hummed. “You know, you are going to be very useful when camping.”

Izuku blinked, looking up. Hitoshi leaned back in his chair. “Think about it. We need fire, you got it. We need electricity, there you are. We need ice, you are practically a dispenser.” Hitoshi smirked. “Glad I snagged you as my traveling partner.” Izuku and Chip stared at him for a long while before the greenette smirked. “Yeah, what would you do without us.”

And their classmates let out a simultaneous breath of relief.

Dad walked in and class started. “Today and tomorrow you will be working on your courses. You need to have them finalized by me before the end of school tomorrow.”

He and Hitoshi revised their course, having it been denied the first time around. Hitoshi decided that he wanted to try and catch a Purrloin, the pre-evolution of Liepard, as he continues down the cat path. With this thought in mind, they were planning to head up Rounte 14 to Laverre City and then down Route 15 where they are said to be commonly seen. After getting it approved by Dad, the decided on what to bring, also thinking that Smokey could probably handle carrying a bit but also knowing they are supposed to be ‘roughing it.’ They decided that both of them should bring tents, one for them and one for the pokemon. It was decided that Smokey would carry the cooking supplies. Hitoshi would carry the firestarters and the first aid kit and Izuku would carry the sleeping equipment and clothing. The next day they exchanged gear so their bags would already be pre-selected with what they would carry.

The day he was packing everything, Izuku felt restless. Restless and tired. He had a nightmare every night since the news about Mr. Midoriya being missing came out. He’s had to leave the classroom twice on teacher’s orders when he wouldn’t go out himself to calm down. He and Dad were looking for therapists every night but all of them he couldn’t find reason to trust. Some things on their resumes just didn’t sit well with Izuku and Chip.

Izuku didn’t say it, he didn’t want to hurt Dad, but he didn’t have to either. Dad went through and removed all of the one’s that had black hair and/or black eyes. He and Chip, they just… couldn’t.

Dad entered the living room. They were staying in Yamada’s place for another couple of weeks. Some of the wood in their house had warped too and was getting replaced. Yamada was already in bed. The hyperactive man sleeps like a log at night. Izuku and Dad on the other hand had their own respective issues. PTSD, hero work, etc. Yamada has PTSD from hero work too though and sometimes gets restless and walks around at night. Izuku feels bad for barging in on his safe zone like this. The greenette cried out last night in his sleep and sent both Yamada and Dad into a frenzy. The night isn’t a very fun place.

“Hey, kid,” Dad greeted. Izuku looked up from his position sitting against Smokey on the floor. “Hey…” The raven-haired man sighed and walked over. He looked down at Smokey. “Do you mind?” “Doom!” With a chuckle, Dad sat beside Izuku and leaned against the large pokemon too.

“He’s warm,” Izuku murmurs. Dad nods. “Very. Fire types are nice. Like living blankets.” The greenette huffed. Dad bumped his shoulder. “Don’t worry, you three,” referring to Izuku, Smokey, and Chip who was curled up on Smokey’s back, eyes closed hut still listening. “We’ll be there. You won’t see us but we will see you and everything around you.” Absol walked over and laid down, resting his head on Izuku’s legs. Dad gently pulled Izuku down to lay against him. “I promise, I won’t let anything happen to you. Remember, I’ll be there and when I’m there-”

“It’s okay,” Izuku finished, closing his eyes. Dad smiled sadly, still not necessarily liking that analogy but knowing it helps. “Right. Everything will be okay so sleep now and enjoy your journey.”

Viridian eyes flutter closed and in the arms of his father and with the warmth of his guardian pokemon wreathing around him he sleeps and no nightmares disturb him that night.

…

… 

… 

“Alright, brats,” Dad addressed the children of Class 1-A, sans those who flew off yesterday to different reasons. They all stood just outside of UA at five o’clock in the morning, half of them half-dead o their feet. Those that weren’t were practically vibrating with energy and anticipation or twitching in fear (*cough cough* Izuku). “You have two weeks to catch yourself a pokemon and return here. Does everyone have what they need? Video gear, camping gear, and alert watches?”

“Yes, Sensei!”

Dad nodded. “Well then, I wish you the best of luck on the last part of your mid-term exam.” He smirks wryly. “And don’t forget, if you don’t pass, you don’t come to the camp. Now off you go!” A couple of groups went off together. Some immediately headed for the hills on their own like Todoroki who turned around and walked back through the front gate to go out the back way, taking a convenient shortcut. Izuku and Hitoshi along with Smokey, Chip, and Espurr began their track right down the middle of Lumiose City, headed for Route 14.

* **thump** *

Izuku’s head jerked up to a highrise next to them. On the top was… Dad and Umbreon.

* **thump** *

He looked to the other side. Absol jumped past and a bit behind him came Seviper. They purposefully made noise so that he would hear them. Izuku took a deep breath. _It’s okay…_ The rest of the time, they were silent and Izuku couldn’t see them but he knew they were there and that meant the world to him.

“It’s so eerily quiet this early in the morning,” Hitoshi whispered. Izuku had to agree. It was still dark out, the night lasting for longer as they were reaching the end of the year. Nothing but the street lights on, they trecked through the silent city. Not even the bars were open. Not that Izuku minded. _People shouldn’t be drinking…_

\-----

_Daddy’s breath smelt bad tonight. He drank that weird brown stuff. It makes him crazy._

_Daddy is scary when he is crazy._

\-----

A shiver went down his spine and he forced himself to look away from the bar. “We are almost at the boarder,” Hitoshi stated, noticing and efficiently dragging Izuku’s attention from what his thoughts were currently on. When they got to the edge, they weren’t in the barren land that most would be. There was a long street going off into the distance. And then they turned and walked around the edge until they found Route 14. The Routes were specifically created for trainers. They were rocky, dirt, off road paths between cities and towns. Some winded through forests and mountains. Others went through desserts and even over bodies of water. Unlike the main roads, they were surrounded by pokemon, the paths easily lost in the natural terrain of the earth. A lot of heroes, even after their graduating days, still travel them when they go around to recollect badges to keep their hero title and participate in the ranking battles to train their skills and prepare themselves.

“Wow, looks like a pretty smooth trail,” Hitoshi comments a bit louder now that they are outside of the city. And he is right. The grass on either side is green, the dirt road is distinct and straight, not at all being lost in the surrounding area. “Didn’t the map say that it is supposed to be sort of swampy and twisty-turny?” Izuku asked, looking around. Hitoshi shrugged. “I guess we will find out sooner or later.”

About an hour of walking later, having only seen a few Weepinbell and Carnavine along the way, the traveling troupe found out what it meant by ‘swampy’. * **Squiiish** * They all came to a halt. Izuku’s eyes narrowed. He looked down and found his foot sinking a bit into mud. Luckily he was already wearing the hiking boots Dad got him. “Allllrighty then.” He pulled his foot out and on they continued peacefully until- * **Squiiish** *.. Hitoshi groaned. The green grass around them started to turn a deeper shade of green, the flat ground around them started to raise a bit making the path seem to fall into a mini ravine, and the previously non-existent trees started to, well, exist. Shrubbery and trees of depressing colors soon began to surround them and soon they were unable to see outside of the forest. The trail began to get muddier and muddier until nothing could be heard but-

* **Squiiish** * * **Squiiish** * ***Squiiish** *

 ***Squiiish** * * **Squiiish** * ***Squiiish** ***Squiiish** *

* **Squiiish** * * **Squiiish** * ***Squiiish** *

“Well, you got your swampy,” Hitoshi sarcastically commented. “I never said that I _wanted_ it,” he snipped back. For the most part, it wasn’t _too_ bad. Their smaller pokemon ended up having to ride on Smokey’s back but hey still needed the Houndoom to carry the cooking supplies so he was kind of stuck having muddy paws. The worst part was when night started to fall.

It would be about a three day treck through Route 14 and Izuku could already tell that nights would be the worst. First off, they had one hell of a time trying to find a dry spot of land to set up camp. With the trees covering most of the light anyway, by the time the sun started going down it was mega dark. The group had to diverge off the path and climb out of the small ravine which was honestly only about a foot above Hitoshi’s head high to get into the forest and find dry ground.

“I don’t know what the heck I am doing,” Hitoshi grumbles as Izuku comes back out of the forest with a miniscule amount of dry fire wood, most of it soaked by the natural terrain. Izuku raises an eyebrow at the poor attempt at a tent. Not that he could do much better. They did get it. Eventually. And the fire wasn’t _too_ hard. The damp ground made sure that it wouldn’t spread around but they still made a ring around the pile of wood with rocks they had gathered. Smokey lit it or them and they set up a pot over it. For the first night it was going pretty well.

____________________________

“How about this?” Hitoshi pulled a can of soup out of his bag. No response. He looked over his shoulder. “Izuku?” The greenette was staring at the fire a bit further off. The purple-haired boy stood and walked over to his friend. “Izuku.”

His friend jumped, startled. Wide eyes met Hitoshi’s own purple. A wobbly smile formed on Izuku’s face. “A- ah, sorry. I- I’m going to, uh, g- go use the bathroom,” he turns around, “s- somewhere.” Almost robotically, Izuku walks away, Hitoshi staring after. Looking around, Chip can be found hiding against Smokey on the other side of the larger pokemon. _Ah…_

Hitoshi should have saw this coming, really. Throughout the day, Izuku and Chip would jump or flinch at random times. When Hitoshi noticed they weren’t listening he would try to draw their attention again but sometimes it wouldn’t work. He didn’t know how to handle Izuku and Chip like Shouta did but he didn’t want Izuku going this alone. He’s glad he asked the boy to join him on his journey.

Making up his mind, Hitoshi started the soup and when Izuku came back, he greeted him with a smile. Izuku wouldn’t meet his eyes though until Hitoshi was away from the fire and Izuku could see him without that in the background. “I made soup,” Hitoshi passed Izuku a plastic bowl. “Th- thanks.”

Izuku was deflating. Hitoshi looked over at Espurr and nodded. The psychic pokemon used it’s powers and took the fire in it’s grasps. “Izuku, look,” Hitoshi pointed. “Me and Espurr have been working on this for some time now.” Green eyes glanced in the general direction of the fire. Espurr moved it into the air, forming it into the form of a Pyroar. It ran around the sky. “I was thinking of showing it to Serena. Maybe if she got a psychic type pokemon she could try it, you know?” He looked over at his friend. Izuku had turned to it completely, watching the sky as the Pyroar pranced around in the sky. He looked over at Chip. The Eevee had peaked over the back of Smokey to watch.

Pyroar, Rapidash, Gyradose, Noivern. The pokemon danced in the sky before Espurr took the fire and made it swirl back down and land back on the wood.

“What do you think?” Hitoshi asked. Izuku’s eyes looked so, so sad. “Why can’t it look like that all of the time?” the boy whispered. Hitoshi pat his shoulder. “Someday it will for you. Come on,” he jerked his head, “let’s go to bed. We have a long trip tomorrow.”

It may not be the same as the mansion but Izuku is still one of his best friends, him and Serena always will be, and though it might take a while for Izuku and Chip to smile like they did back at the mansion, Hitoshi doesn’t mind. It doesn’t change who they are and they always will be his friends. 

Izuku put out the fire in Vaporeon form before shifting back. It was unsafe to leave it unattended at night. The pokemon took the right tent using Smokey as their own personal heater and the boys took the left tent using a mini, tent-safe heater for their own source of heat. Trauma or not, they were both still teenage boys and they talked and joked long into the night before HItoshi finally passed out.

____________________________

“Sol,” Absol stepped in front of Shouta. The raven-haired man shied back. Hitoshi went to sleep hours ago but Izuku was still up. He _needed_ him! But Absol was right. Shouta couldn’t step in. This was an exam. He was barely permitted to be the one to follow them as he was still recovering from the ice fiasco. Then again, so was Izuku.

He sighed and let out Umbreon and Seviper who were sleeping in their pokeballs to take his and Absol’s shift so that they could sleep but Shouta had a feeling that he wouldn’t be sleeping all that much tonight.

____________________________

They didn’t really have any complications in their journey through Route 14. Well, aside from that one time Hitoshi got stuck in a patch of dirt that ended up being a really deep puddle of thick mud. Izuku and Chip had a fun time spraying him down with water before turning around and letting Smokey dry him. 

By the time they arrived in Laverre City all of them were dead tired. Their legs hurt so much! Izuku’s and Chip’s nerves were shot. They hardly got a wink of sleep through their PTSD.

Upon arriving in Laverre City, they made their way to the Pokemon Center. Laverre City is a very rustic city with traditional styled buildings built into the forest landscape. Hitoshi pointed to a giant tree int he middle. “That is where the fairy type gym is.” Izuku looked over. “It’s huge.” “Yeah. We should check it out on our way back.”

Hitoshi nodded. “You should probably look for a pokemon that can fight against it.” Izuku tilted his head. “Why?” “Smokey is a dark type and you only have Chip after that. What will you do if they are knocked out?” Hitoshi said. Izuku hummed, looking ahead. “Makes sense. You should too then at some point because Purrloin and Liepard are also dark types.”

They entered the Pokemon Center and were greeted with a chipper: “Welcome!” A girl that looked suspiciously like Nurse Hope and Nurse Joy stood behind the counter with two pink pigtails. “You two must be trainers! How exciting!” “How did she figure?” Hitoshi grumbled under his breath making Izuku snort. Despite their best efforts to keep clean from a bit below their knees down they were covered in mud and a bit was on their other clothes. Their hair was disheveled and they were carrying quite a load. Yeah, it’s safe to say they came from Route 14 and not the main street.

Izuku took the lead. He always found the family of nurses that ran the Pokemon Centers around Kalos quite delightful. He hasn’t had a bad run in with them yet. Now, he doesn’t trust any of them besides Nurse Hope back in Vaniville but he could be respectful enough to them. _I should call her while I am here._ He walked up to the front desk. “Yes, ma’am. Is there a room we could use? We shouldn’t be more then a night.” She nodded. “Of course! My name is Nurse Grace. Please follow me.”

They were lead into a hallway with many doors. “These are all rooms for travelers and trainers. We provide dinner for all trainers but the rest of the meals have to be covered by yourselves somewhere in the city. We also have a communal bathroom and laundry room down the hall,” Nurse Grace stopped outside of a door. “Most trainers end up needing it by the time they get here,” she winks. _I wonder why…_ “Thank you, Nurse Grace,” Izuku and Hitoshi bows. “Would it be possible for me to use the landline here later?” She nods. “That would be no problem. Would you like me to check your pokemon during your stay?” “Yes, please.”

Chip had to, regretfully, go in his pokeball for this. While their pokemon were getting a check up, Izuku and Hitoshi off-loaded for the night.

“A bed!” Hitoshi flopped down on the left bunk bed bottom bunk. Izuku chuckled. He sat on the bottom bunk of the right bunk set. It brought back memories of Professor Oak’s Pokemon Summer Camp.

\-----

_‘I’m your team leader, Delia Ketchum, but you can just call me Miss Delia, k?’_

_\-----_

_‘I’m Tierno! This is my buddy, Squirtle!’_

_‘I’m Sana! This is Bulbasaur!’_

_‘Mmm. I’m Trevor. This is Charmander.’_

_‘The name’s Toni. I can;t bring out my pokemon ‘cause it’s a Goldeen.’_

_\-----_

_‘My name’s Ash! What’s yours?’_

_\-----_

_‘My name is Serena.’_

_‘I- I’m Izuku!’_

_‘I know, silly!’_

\-----

“It’s strange to see you lost in good memories,” Hitoshi’s voice cut in. Izuku looked up at his friend. “You were smiling,” He explained. Izuku looked down. “I suppose that one wasn’t the worst… It was when me and Serena first became friends.” Hitoshi hummed. “Yeah, that would be a good one. It’s good to see a smile on your face.” “Thanks…”

They retrieved their pokemon when they went to the main lobby for dinner. “Nurse Grace, do you happen to have the phone number for the Vaniville Pokemon Center?” Izuku asked. She nods. “Yes, sir, I do! My cousin works down there.” _Ah._ “Does she now? I used to live there. Hope, right?” “Right! Take as long as you need.”

Izuku takes the number written on a piece of paper in his hand. He wanders over to the landline phone on the wall of the building. Taking a deep breath, Izuku dialed the Vaniville Pokemon Center. It rang a few times before the receiver * **click** *ed in his ear.

“ _Hello. This is Nurse Hope from the Vaniville Town Pokemon Center._ ” Izuku took in a shuddering breath. He smiled.

“Nurse Hope, it’s been a while,” he greeted.

…

“ _Izuku_ ,” the woman’s voice breathed out.

“Yeah, it’s me.”

He could practically hear her smile on the other end of the phone. “ _How are you?_ ” “I’m… well right now. How are things back in Vaniville?” She hummed. “ _There was a big overturn of the police station after everything went down and of the school staff. I know it may sound bad but your case helped this town a lot to see it’s faults. People are a lot kinder, it seems. They reach out more to those in need and don’t ignore the hurting as much_.”

Izuku shook his head. “Don’t be sorry for that. I am glad things are turning for the better down there.” “ _And you?_ ” Nurse Hope asked. “ _Are things turning for the better for you?_ ” Izuku curled his fist a few times, looking down at it. He looks over at Hitoshi and Smokey and Espurr and Chip. “Yes. I think it is.”

“ _That is great to hear, Izuku. I am so happy for you._ ” He chuckled. “Thanks. Maybe at some point we could meet up. I miss the old center down there.” _“I think that is a lovely idea. I will try and see if Yamada will let me come up some time._ ”

Hitoshi waves him over for dinner. “Sounds good. I have to go.” “ _Alright,_ ” Nurse Hope says. “ _You go have fun._ ” “Thanks.” “ _Oh, and Izuku?_ ” “Hmm?”

“ **_I am so proud of you._ **” Tears fill his eyes. “Thank you…” “Tell Chip hi for me!”

When he hangs up the phone, Izuku feels a bit lighter. It was nice to talk with her again. It had been so long. With a bit of renewed energy, Izuku sat with his friend and pokemon and they ate. _Things are good_ , he muses in his mind as he eats, Nurse Hope’s words play in his mind. _Things are very good…_

After dinner, a quick shower, and a couple of loads of laundry, Izuku and Hitoshi are finally able to turn in for the night. In the dark of the Pokemon Center, Izuku remembers his times sleeping at the Pokemon Center in Vaniville. He would always be so tired from the training before and couldn’t keep his eyes open long enough to help Nurse Hope with her work, much less go steal food. Nurse Hope always let him sleep in the trainer’s room. She always made sure to wake him up too. She was so kind. Nurse Hope was probably his favorite part of Vaniville town. For the first time in his life, Izuku found himself missing it.

With those peaceful thoughts, Izuku slept well that night.

…

…

…

“-ku. Iz- u. Izuku.” * **!gasp!** *

He shot up swinging. “Woah!” Hitoshi jumped out of the way just barely in time. “It’s just me!” Viridian eyes flitted around the room frantically, wood walls turning to dark stone. _No… Nononononono!_ “Izuku, over here,” hands grabbed his face, forcing him to look forward. He met violet eyes. “Izuku, name, now.” He couldn’t breathe or see straight but he knew that voice.

\-----

_‘I’ll kill each and every one of your precious friends.’_

\-----

“Hi- Hitoshi!” he gasped out. A deep fog washed over his mind, clouding his thoughts and putting a halt to his rapidly worsening breathing. He felt his body begin to untense and air waft into his lungs. After a few seconds, the fog disappeared. He blinked a few times, eyes wet from unshed tears. “Better?” Hitoshi asked, stepping back. With a yawn, Izuku nodded and rubbed his tired eyes. “Thanks.” He had sort of gotten used to this by now. Hitoshi had done it the past few mornings, brainwashed Izuku mid-panic attack to get him to calm down. “You slept like a baby,” Hitoshi commented, the boy already dressed and ready to go. “And I’m not even joking this time. It’s, like, eleven in the morning. I tried to give you as much time as possible but we need to get going.”

Izuku blinked. He tapped the alert watch on his wrist. It lit up and showed the time. Sure enough, 11:03. He stretched his arms over his head. Chip crawled on his lap and rubbed against his chest. “Vee!” With a chuckle, Izuku pet his head. “Today’s going to be a good day, Chip,” Izuku whispered. He just felt it.

Hitoshi smiled to himself at those words he was sure he wasn’t meant to hear.

They stopped by a small cafe for a brief lunch, both of their respective parents having given them money for when they stopped in a town or city. Afterwards, they packed things back up at the Pokemon Center and headed Southeast for Route 15. Hitoshi took the lead as he was the one hunting for a pokemon hardcore. Izuku kept lookout though. A few times he thought he saw Dad or Seviper through the trees but it must have just been a trick of the eye. Route 15 was a bit murky and swampy towards Laverre City but the further they got into it the more grassy and dry it was, gratefully. Hitoshi soon fell off the path and into the woods. They wouldn’t find much just walking the paths.

“Let’s set up camp here,” Izuku suggested in a small clearing with trees towering overhead. Hitoshi nodded. “Looks good to me but we still have some light out.” “I’ll set up then,” Izuku said, dropping his bag, “and you go find yourself a Purrloin.” And that’s what they did. Izuku found it a bit peaceful just sitting around putting together the tents and setting things up for the night. The sounds of the forest were calming.

* **crack** *

His, Chip’s, and Smokey’s heads all whipped around to the forest at the sound of a snapping twig. The ease was instantly lost. He got in a low crouch and moved forward a bit. He couldn’t see much through the trees. Izuku pushed up his glasses and turned around again. 

* **crack** *

He froze. The bushes behind him began to rustle. Smokey stepped in front of him, growling low. “Hold it!” the sound of a human stopped him. Out from the bushes walked out a boy in a blue ninja’s jumpsuit, a yellow scarf, brown hair in a small ponytail, and on his forehead donned the silver band that all trainers from Seijin Trainer’s School in Cyllage City wear. “It is just I, Sanpei Yuko of Seijin Trainer’s School. I am surprised you heard me. We train in the arts of ninja there.” Izuku raised an eyebrow. “You were pretty loud for a ninja.” The boy, Sanpei, scratched the back of his head. “W- well, I’m working on it, okay?! Anyway! That is not important! What is important is that you,” he pointed accusingly at Izuku, “are a trainer and I,” he pointed at himself, “am too.”

…

“So?” Izuku tilted his head. Sanpei gasped. “Do you not know the law?!” Izuku folded his arms. “You sneak up on me for a surprise attack and expect me to make conversation with you? As far as I am concerned, you are an enemy.” _An enemy. Right. No sane person would just try to creep up like that._ Izuku’s eyes traveled around the forest. _Are they here? Did they come for me? Where’s Hitoshi? Is Dad watching? Did something happen to Dad?_ Izuku felt his hand twitch. _Something is off here._

Sanpei sighed. “I suppose you are a first year, then. I’m a second year. Many teachers don’t tell their first year students this as a joke in case they run into a higher year student in their journey. Many trainer schools send out their students for their catching assignment around the same time so that the students might run into each other. The ‘law’ is that when two trainer’s meet on the road,” he smirked, “they battle.”

A tree nearby rustled and out dropped a Frogadier that dropped down beside Sanpei. Izuku slid back into a fighting stance almost naturally. Sanpei laughed. “You didn’t hear him, though! So what do you say? Fight me?”

_I don’t have a choice!_ Izuku felt his heart pound painfully in his chest. _He’s not going to let me go. Where are his teammates? Surely there are more of them, right?_ Izuku grit his teeth. “Fine. Let’s fight,” he hissed. Sanpei sweatdropped, a bit unnerved. “Alright… Okay! One-on-one battle. I will be fighting with Frogadier. Who will you choose to battle with? Your Houndoom or..” He eyes Chip suspiciously. _Underestimating him?_ “I’ll be using my Eevee. Houndoom, please call off for us.”

They move a bit away from the campsite. Smokey barks a couple times before letting out a loud: “DOOM!”

“Let’s finish this quickly. Frogadier, water gun!” Sanpei commanded. “Not yet, Chip,” Izuku whispered. “Dodge.” They didn’t know Sanpei’s quirk. It was unsafe to act brashly. Frogadier shot out a stream of water directly at them. Sanpei, much to their surprise, jumped into the stream and vanished. Izuku and Chip jumped in different directions. The water barreled past them. Before they could do much else, Sanpei suddenly reformed out of the water right next to them.

“Secret Jutsu: Water Teleportation!” He grabbed Izuku’s arm and swung the greenette around into a tree. Izuku felt the wind get knocked out of him by the force. And yet, he grinned. _Got it._ He let his body hit the ground and rolled out of the way when Sanpei tried to land a kick on him. “Ch- Eevee, on my count!” “I don’t know what you are planning but I won’t give you the time! Frogadier,” Sanpei threw his hand out, “rain dance!” “Dier!” Frogadier raised its arms to the sky.

The sky above rumbled and clouds gathered. It started out as a small drizzle before it started to rain. Smokey ran into one of the tents. Izuku’s eyes lit up. _Perfect!_ Sanpei jumped up and disappeared into the rain. “Chip, come here.” The Eevee ran over. Izuku picked him up. He closed his eyes and listened to the rain. _Where are you, villain?_ Sanpei appeared beside him and landed a kick to his back before disappearing again. Izuku only stumbled a bit. _Small, quick hits._ Izuku waited. Kick after kick he took them. “Not yet,” he murmured. “He needs to be higher…” _That and…_ Frogadier opened its mouth and let out another water gun attack. Izuku’s eyes snapped open. “Chip, now!” In a flash of light, Izuku spun around holding Chip out with one hand. He felt the weight of his pokemon increase as he evolved. Izuku chucked Chip into the air.

“Sorry,” he smirked and the two lit up the world.

Electricity exploded from their bodies. It traveled through the rain in flashes, crackling loudly as it moved. When the water gun hit Izuku he didn’t dodge. Instead, the electricity traveled up the stream and hit Frogadier directly. From above, Sanpei screamed, losing hold on his quirk and pulling out of the falling water. He fell to the ground with a * **BAM** *. Chip landed next to him, now fully a Jolteon. Izuku’s hair turned spikey and a bright yellow, his eyes flashing yellow as well. 

The rain subsided.

Sanpei groaned on the ground. Izuku scowled. “You’d better go back where you came from and tell your boss or whatever that he ain’t gonna get me.” The teen on the ground pulled himself to a sitting position. “Whaaa…?” Izuku took a menacing step forward. A hand on his shoulder stopped him.

“Izuku,” he froze in his tracks. Looking up, yellow eyes met black. “D- Dad?” The man let go and walked over to Sanpei. “Wait, he’s-” “Telling the truth,” Dad finished. The raven-haired man extended a hand to the fallen teen. “Who are you?” Sanpei questioned, letting Dad help him up. “I’m Professional Hero: Eraserhead. My apologies. He is my student. Recently he has been targeted by villains. I’ve been following him just in case he is targeted on this journey.” Dad turned to him. “ **Aizawa** ,” Izuku jumped, “this ‘law’ thing is something that actually happens. I probably should have told you beforehand but it is a joke a lot of teacher’s play on the first years. Do not worry, if I thought something was wrong I would have stepped in.” Izuku looked down. Dad turned back to Sanpei. “Please forgive him for being so rough.”

Sanpei chuckled. “It’s fine! It’s fine! I understand that. It would be rather scary to be targeted by villains.” Dad bowed. “Thank you.” Without another word, he disappeared into the forest.

Izuku let out a breath before looking at his opponent. “I’m sorry,” he bowed. Sanpei helped Frogadier up. “Like I said, it’s fine! I am sorry too. I did not know the circumstances you were under, **Aizawa** .” Izuku blinked. _Aizawa…_ He looked into the forest. _Aizawa Izuku._ A small smile formed on his face. He looked back at the boy. “At least let me heal you and your pokemon.”

The camp was completely drenched. Luckily they hadn’t started a fire yet. He hoped there would still be enough light to dry the ground enough for them to start one. They took turns in the tents changing into dry clothes. “Doom…” Smokey huffed. Izuku chuckled, patting his head. “Sorry, Smokey, I didn’t expect it to start raining.” “Doom.”

Sanpei Yuko, a second year student of Seijin Trainer’s School in Cyllage City. He actually lives in a small ninja village a bit into the surrounding forest of the city. His family is well known in Cyllage City as they and their sidekicks are the main heroes that patrol there and their agency is there. As it would turn out, Sanpei’s eldest brother is none other than Edgeshot, the number 6 hero in all of Kalos. “That’s quite the age gap,” Izuku commented as he applied burn cream to Sanpei’s back. The boy laughed. “I was an unexpected arrival to my parents.”

* **rustle** *

They all looked to the forest. Out came stumbling Hitoshi, mud up to his waist, hair a mess, dirt on his face, and a twig sticking out of his hair. They met eyes, Izuku applying burn cream to a shirtless stranger’s back. A wicked grin split Izuku’s face. “Don-” “PFFT! What the hell happened to you?!” * **sigh…** *

A few introductions and some wood gathering later and they were all sitting around the fire as it began to grow dark. Well, to the side of it so Izuku didn’t have to directly face it. They all ate canned soup together while their pokemon ate pokechow and they listened to Sanpei talk about his ninja village. Sanpei had a ball over Izuku when he and Chip de-evolved too and over Espurr’s control of the fire. He ended up setting up his tent there for the night as well.

It’s funny how when you let your guard down just a bit and you open up some you can make friends and connections with people that you never thought you could have.

____________________________

Shouta heard the tent zipper. He opened his eyes and sat up. Peering through the leaves of the tree he was lounging in, Shouta could just barely make out Izuku’s form. The greenette stared down at the few embers still alight in the fire pit. He looked up to the sky.

“ **Aizawa Izuku** ,” Shouta’s heart skipped a beat. The boy let out a small chuckle. Beside him walked Chip. Izuku knelt down and picked up the small pokemon, holding him tightly. “Aizawa Izuku and Aizawa Chip.”

The happy “Vee!” was like music to Shouta’s ears. He watched his sons for a good thirty minutes as they watched the sky in content peace.

_Aizawa Izuku… Aizawa Chip… Aizawa Shouta… Yeah, that sounds right._

____________________________

Sanpei and Frogadier headed off the next morning to continue their search for a pokemon as well. Izuku and Hitoshi stayed put because there very much was a colony of Purrloin and Liepard that Hitoshi had found nearby and the purple-haired boy was determined to catch one. Izuku, on the other hand, went off that day on his own to go find a pokemon to catch as well. With promises to meet up that night at the campsite, Izuku and Hitoshi went their separate ways.

The greenette jumped back on the path and wandered off with Chip and Smokey. He didn’t know how he felt about bringing another pokemon on board but he understood the necessity of it. It was their sixth day out for this part of the exam. Subtracting the three and a half day travel back, maybe four if they decided to check out the Laverre Gym, Izuku had about three days himself to catch a pokemon.

An hour, maybe two, down the path Izuku jumped off of it again to the side opposite of Hitoshi’s side. He hadn’t really done much studying up on this area, planning to do that video record part of the exam instead but after thinking out the logic in Hitoshi’s statement about the gym he is starting to think otherwise.

A whimper further ahead catches his and his pokemon’s attention. “Doom.” Smokey stops a bit in front of them. Izuku swallows thickly. His skin crawls in anticipation. Smokey sniffs the air. He looks over his shoulder at Izuku and nods. Slowly, they make their way through the forest until they find the source of the whimpering next to a tree. A small grey, dog-like pokemon lay on its side. Izuku pulls out his phone and with what little service he has out here looks it up. A Poochyena. He looks up at the tree where claw marks scar on the highest branch dangles a single grepa berry. “Ah. So that’s how it is.” Izuku kneels down by the wounded pokemon. “Hey there,” he whispers in a calming voice, not unlike the one Dad uses when Izuku is scared. “Are you okay?” he asks. The Poochyena lifts its head. “Yen…” Izuku frowns. He doesn’t speak pokemon. Chip sniffs the pokemon’s leg and gives it a light tap. “Yen!” Poochyena flinches back. Viridian eyes blink. “Are you hurt? Here, let me help you.”

He places his bag beside him and pulls out his first aid kit. He and hitoshi both had one in case they got separated like this even if this was intentional. As he pulled out the wrappings, Izuku couldn’t help but remember his days at the Vaniville Pokemon Center helping Nurse Hope with the not so bad injuries. Izuku felt the familiar tingle of evolution light up in him. Leaves began to grow a bit on his arms. Looking to his side, Chip had just evolved into Leafeon. “What are you doing?” “Leafeon!” Chip looked up at the grepa berry. Izuku nodded and turned back to the Poochyena while Chip used his vines to reach the berry and get it down. Izuku found two sturdy sticks, broke them to the size of Poochyena’s leg, and lined them up to the wounded leg. “This might hurt a bit,” he warned. Props to the small pokemon that didn’t cry out _too_ loudly when Izuku tried to gently take her leg and used the sticks as a splint. He wrapped it up in the thick, white bandages.

“There we go! All done!” He giggled to himself. _I sound like Nurse Hope._ Chip came over and handed Poochyena the berry. Her eyes sparkled. Izuku smiled fondly as the pokemon took a big * **chomp** * out of it. His body tingled and the leaves fell off of his body one by one. Chip was once again an Eevee. _Maybe I could catch Poochyena?_ Izuku stopped. _No, no, it’s a dark type too. But she’s so cute!_ Izuku shakes his head. “Do you have a family around here?” Poochyena looked up and yipped, looking behind her into the forest. Izuku nodded. “You finish that up and we will take you back, okay?”

And they did. With Izuku carrying it and Chip guiding by following directions given by Poochyena. _Wow, she wandered far._ They were heading towards a dip in the ground. When it opened up, there was a dip with a slope down and a clearing at the bottom. At the far end of the clearing was a small stone cliff where the land didn’t dip around the clearing and met. All around were a mix of Poochyena, Mightyena, and a few Watchog and Floatzel. A few pokemon-made dens were all around.

“Yena!” Izuku stumbled back as two Mightyena came running over. Both were smaller than Smokey but still had some size to them. There was a small one with sleeker fur than the larger one with more rough fur. The mother and father of this Poochyena. “Pooch!” Poochyena leaned forward and bumped noses with the mother. Izuku smiled. “I don’t know if you understand me but I found this one lost in the woods.” He knelt down and carefully set Poochyena down. “She has hurt her back leg.”

The mother and father bowed graciously towards him. “It was nothing, really.” He turned to his own pokemon. “Let’s head back to camp. It will be dark soon.” They nodded and tried to walk away but the father Mightyena stepped in front of them. “Wha- Woah!” Izuku stumbled back as it nudged Izuku back. “Might.” Izuku raised an eyebrow. Smokey snorted. He jerked his head to Izuku and walked into the pokemon colony. “Huh? Wait, where are we going?” Unable to do anything else but dumbfoundedly get pushed along, Izuku, Chip, and Smokey were guided across the clearing. A few pokemon watched and observed. Others scowled and growled. Some just didn’t care. They were pushed into a small den made in a hollowed out tree. Izuku had to get on all fours and crawl in. Smokey had to crouch lowly and try his darndest not to let his horns hit the top.

Inside were two patches of moss. Out of one came trotting over two more Poochyena. “Pooch!” “Poochyena!” The wounded Poochyena from before hobbled over. “Siblings?” he questioned. Chip nodded. Mother Mightyena sat in the larger moss patch. Father Mightyena pushed Izuku into it. “Erm, isn’t this, like, your bed?” “Might,” he gave an affirmative bark. Izuku looked out of the den at the darkening sky. “L- look we really have to-” he cut off when all of the pokemon suddenly went to find cover. Before he could blink, a downpour started. Izuku sighed. Then he chuckled. “Wild pokemon really do know the weather, don’t they!” He smiled down at Mother Mightyena. “Thank you. I had no clue.” She looked over at the three Poochyena playing and then bumped his shoulder. _Returning the favor, huh?_ Izuku pulled out his phone and tried to call Hitoshi but lo and behold: no service. This clearing must be a dead zone. 

Izuku sighed and leaned back against the inner wall around the tree. He shivered as the cold rain air wafted in with the cold night air that was slowly moving in. Mother Mightyena laid on his legs. “Might,” Father Mightyena called over his pups. He settled next to Izuku’s side. Izuku watched as the family surrounded him and Chip, sharing their warmth. Smokey casually raised his own body heat.

This is the loyalty shown to those who save their child. It made Izuku a bit melancholy but he couldn’t find it in himself to be too sad for long. Instead, he just relished in the warmth and waited out the storm. 

____________________________

Shouta sighed as rain beat down on him and his pokemon. He is lucky he thought ahead to pack them all raincoats.

Izuku was doing fine. Better than fine, he thinks. Shouta thinks this might have been good for the kid to get out of the house. Nature is a very calming thing. Not only that but he was able to hang out with Hitoshi and relive something similar to their days at the mansion, some of Izuku’s and Chip’s fondest memories. A little hiccup with the trainer from before which that was on Shouta, he really should have told Izuku beforehand about that, but aside from that this part of the exam might have truly been a blessing for the boy.

“I have to go warn Hitoshi that Izuku probably won’t return tonight,” he told Umbreon. “Seviper, come with me. Absol, Umbreon, keep watch over Izuku just in case.” “Sol.” “Umbreon.”

And Shouta disappeared into the night.

____________________________

Izuku bowed deeply the next morning. “Thank you for housing us for the night.” He scratched the back of his head, averting his eyes. “U- um, and for earlier this morning…” He woke up in a panic a few hours ago and the Mightyena family helped calm him down. They were too cute to be scared around! Father Mightyena and Mother Mightyena both gave curt nods. Their Poochyena daughter Izuku helped was between the two, mimicking Izuku’s bow.

It wasn’t the interaction he expected to have with wild pokemon, he expected something more dangerous or feral, and though he still has a week in the wild to go, Izuku is glad that his run in with the wild pack wasn’t something life threatening as seems to be a reoccuring theme in his life. 

* **step** * * **step** * * **step** *

Izuku, Chip, and Smokey all stopped as they walked through the forest in the general direction of where they first found Poochyena. They looked over their shoulders just in time to see a small grey tail disappear behind a tree. “Hmm?” Izuku raised an eyebrow. He met eyes with Chip. They kept going.

* **step** * * **step** * * **step** *

They stopped and looked over their shoulders. The tail disappeared again but a little closer to them this time. A playful smile danced on Izuku’s lips. He pointed to Chip and Smokey and pointed forward before turning around himself. The two nodded and began walking forward. Poochyena hobbled out in her make-shift cast to stalk them but froze when she saw Izuku.

“Shouldn’t you be healing back in your den?” he questioned. Chip and Smokey heard his voice and stopped. They came back. The small puppy pokemon closed her eyes and held up her head defiantly. Izuku sighed and shook his head. He crouched down. “Come here.” Poochyena’s eyes lit up and she trotted over. Izuku caught her in his arms and stood. “Let’s go.”

And they walked back to the pokemon colony where an unamused male and female Mightyena were waiting. Izuku put Poochyena down. “Okay… We are going now…” he waved, walking backwards. When they were out of sight, he turned around straight and kept walking.

* **step** * * **step** * * **step** *

They stopped again. Izuku looked up to the sky. “Deep breath,” he whispered to himself. He took a step forward. * **step** * _OOOOOOOOH!_ Izuku spun around to face the Poochyena. “Yooooou missy are going to make your parents so mad, you know this?” The _audacity_ of this pup to tilt her head as if she had _no idea_ what he meant! Izuku huffed, picked her up, and started through the trail that SHOULD NOT BE BECOMING FAMILIAR again. He met Father Mightyena on the way. They met eyes. Izuku could practically hear the pokemon’s inner voice saying: _‘See what I have to put up with?’_ Izuku set Poochyena on her father’s back. “Stay,” he held up a stern finger. Father Mightyena bowed his head gratefully again. He, Chip, and Smokey all turned around to leave.

“Yena!”

Oh, how Izuku’s heart melted at that sad sound. He looked over his shoulder just in time to see the wobbling Poochyena crash into his leg. “H- hey now…” Izuku crouched by her. He looked up at the saddened Mightyena and then back at Poochyena. “You have a family waiting for you,” he whispered. “A family that loves you very much.” 

When did he start believing in ‘family’ again? When did it start meaning something to him?

Poochyena pawed at his leg. “Poochyena…” it whined. Izuku looked up to the sound of multiple paw steps. Mother Mightyena and her two other Poochyena pups came out of the shrubs. “Yena…” Poochyena hung her head and wobbled back. “Might,” Father Mightyena turned her around and pushed her gently back towards Izuku, Chip, and Smokey. The three and Poochyena herself looked back at the family in shock. Father Mightyena picked his daughter up by the scruff and walked her over to Izuku. The greenette knelt down. “Mightyena?” he questioned. Poochyena was deposited in Izuku’s lap. He looked down at her. “Do you want to c- come with me?” She yipped happily. Izuku looked up at the father. They met eyes. SO much confidence in Izuku was held in those eyes.

He took a sharp breath. “I promise, I swear on my life, that I will protect her.” 

Father Mightyena bowed his head. “Yena!” The brother and sister pups came rushing over with their mother. Poochyena got a world full of nuzzles and so did Izuku and Chip and Smokey, the large pokemon kneeling down to accept them. When the family stepped back, so did Izuku. He drew a pokeball from his bag and crouched before the Poochyena. “How would you feel about joining me on my journey?” She yipped happily. Izuku chuckled. Tapping the ball to her head, it opened and in a flash of light she was sucked in.

The ball shook once,

Twice,

Three times before-

  
  


* **doot doot** *

It went still. Izuku had caught Poochyena!

It wasn’t exactly how he thought that was supposed to go. He is sure that the exam meant for him to battle it or something first but they didn’t give any specifics so now Izuku walked through the forest, Chip on his left, Smokey on his right, and on Smokey’s head sat proudly a female Poochyena pup with a broken back leg and you know what? Screw the exam. If they wanted him to fight her they should have been more specific because Izuku has a new pokemon and he isn’t giving her up.

“You…” They all looked up at Hitoshi when they found the camp again. The purple-haired boy pointed at them accusingly. “Where the hell were you?!” And Izuku laughed.

Apparently Dad had come back and told Hitoshi nothing more than: ‘They aren’t dead. Go to sleep.’ A very much Dad way of doing things. Also! Hitoshi caught a Purrloin while they were gone! Espurr and Purrloin fought and, well, it almost ended in a stalemate as dark types like Purrloin are immune to psychic type moves. In the end, Hitoshi threw the pokeball when the Purrloin was trying to stand up and caught it. Purrloin was just as sassy as Poochyena but they still both were welcomed into the gang.

Hitoshi crossed his arms. “Weren’t you looking for a not dark type?” Izuku copied him. “Says the one who caught a dark type Purrloin.” “Touche.”

With their pokemon caught and joining their respective groups, Izuku and Hitoshi made their way back to Laverre City. “Now, what shall I name you?” Izuku held up Poochyena as they walked. “You are going to name her too?” Hitoshi asked. Izuku nodded. “Of course! I would be pretty depressing if she were the only one not to have one.” He looked back down at the pokemon in his hands. He began rattling off names just to see her reaction. Hitoshi threw in a few joke ones here and there.

“Ro-” “Pepper,” Hitoshi suddenly cut in. Poochyena yipped happily. Izuku smirked. “Well what do you know? You do have a brain, Hitoshi!” Izuku was promptly whapped upside the head. He chuckled and put the Poochyena back on Smokey’s back. “Pepper? You got the colors down correctly. How does that sound, hmm?” Poochyena yipped again. Izuku smiled. “Pepper it is then!”

They arrived back in Laverre City the next morning on day eight of their excursion. Still, they didn’t really feel like going back to the school just yet. For the rest of that day they just lounged around in the Pokemon Center while the newly-named Pepper was healing. On day nine, they went sight-seeing in Laverre City. As it would turn out, the fairy type gym leader, Valerie, is a popular dress and costume designer. Izuku would have _loved_ to meet her but she was away on business show-casing her most recent designs around Kalos. Maybe he would run into her at some point if she came to Lumiose City? Maybe she was there right now and he was missing his chance? He may never know but he is sure he will battle her at some point for a badge so he won’t worry about it for now.

They made Serena jealous by video calling her in front of the gym. She was an avid fan of Valerie. “Oh! Oh! Oh! IZUKU!” He winced as the yell came through the phone. “Whaaaaat?” he questioned. Serena grinned widely. “They are asking about you!” He tilted his head. “Asking about me? Who?” Serena nodded wildly. “My classmates and teachers! Not only that but former Kalos Queen and famous contest judge Yashio Palmero reached out to me to personally train me. She asked about my costumes. Izuku, do you know what this means?!” He does. Izuku really does but he wants to hear it. Serena grinned widely.

“ **She wants to meet the designer! Izuku, this is it! This is your big chance!** ”

Safe to say, Izuku and Chip were over the moon about this. They made their way through Route 14 again and despite the muddy land weighing down their feet, they felt like they were walking on air. He couldn’t wait to tell Dad and Yamada and Kayama! Of course, they would have to set up a meeting at some point for this to happen and there were so many things that could go wrong. What if she doesn’t like him? What if he is too young? What if Dad says no? What if Mr. Midoriya comes back for him? What if the Rocket Duo comes before him again? What if he is kidnapped?

“Izuku, shut up!” Hitoshi sighed exasperatedly. “It will be fine! Geeze!” The greenette blushed and looked down. His purple-haired friend bumped his shoulder. “See? Even when you try to give it up, designing is your calling.” Izuku smiled down at the ground. _I’m going to be a designer!_

____________________________

Shouta looked up as he heard the sound of footsteps approaching. He was already waiting in front of UA. A few students had already returned throughout the week. Right now a certain group was returning. He saw Izuku, muddy-boots, muddy-pants, barreling down the streets of Lumiose City towards him. Shouta smiled and leaned down. Opening his arms, he caught the speeding boy.

“Dad!”

Like music to his ears. Shouta smiled. When Izuku leaned back the corners of his green eyes were crinkled, his dimples, always a bit more pronounced from his thin body, were deep as the ocean, and a smile unlike any other split his face.

Yes, Shouta thinks this trip was very good for the boy.


	23. Training Camp Musings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku and the hero course students go to camp and some revelations are made!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone?

“She’s so cute!” Uraraka squealed. Izuku chuckled at the brunette’s reaction to Pepper. “Isn’t she a bit young, ribbit?” Tsu asked. Izuku shrugged. “They didn’t give any requirements. What did you guys catch?” He smirked. “Or didn’t you fail the exam?”

Kaminari pulled out a pokeball. “I very much did not fail. Come on out, Blitzle!” The small horse-like pokemon came out in a flash of light. “Ah!” Uraraka exclaimed. “You got a horse too!” She let out her caught pokemon, a Galarian Ponyta. Both fit very well with the trainer’s respective themes. “Ah!” Kaminari pointed at it. “You too!” “Yeah!” They laughed. “What about you, Tsu?” Uraraka asked. The frog-like girl held out a pokeball. “I caught a Skrelp so I can’t take it out.” They all nodded understandingly. “Todoroki?”

The bicolored boy pulled out a pokeball. “Lapras. I can’t take her out either.” He and Tsu met eyes.  _ Water types. _

The classroom door opened and Dad walked in. Everyone froze. Dad let out a bedraggled sigh at the mass multitude of pokemon that were in the classroom. “I was going to let you all go down to the gym to showcase but it would seem you had other ideas. I guess you won’t be doing that then.” A collective ‘Awwwww’ echoed across the class. “Put them away. We have class.” Nevertheless, the students all put away their new catches. “Sorry, Pepper.” “Yena!” Izuku zapped her back in and tucked her pokeball away. Chip always stayed out with him. No one has told him to not do so otherwise and Ash’s Pikachu stays out too. Is it because they are small enough?

“Welcome back,” Dad first stated. “I hope you all found your respective journeys useful in growth.”

Iida held up his hand. “Sensei, I was approached by an apparent other trainer and told that I had to battle him which I did. Was that true? If so, why did you not tell us about this beforehand?” Izuku pursed his lips.  _ Yeah, Dad? Why did you not tell us beforehand instead of almost letting me blow some kid to Kanto and back, huh? _ Dad side-glanced at him knowing the exact thought that was going through Izuku’s mind. He sighed and looked back at the class. “As a joke, most trainer’s schools don’t tell their first year students about the battling when you see another trainer on the road and then send out all of their trainers at once for this assignment. Well, there are certain week slots for each hero school but many students converge. It’s irrational but has been a trainer’s school tradition for many years so we don’t touch it. Now onto other things,” he looked down at the papers on his desk, “some of you did not pass your exam.”

A few audible gulps went around the class.

“Some of you did pass two parts but failed one. You have to pass them all.” Dad looked up. “Kaminari, Ashido, Kirishima, Ketchum, Izuku, and Sato,” the raven-haired man listed, “all of you failed. 

“Aw, man!” “I knew I should have picked answer B!” “Would cake change your mind?”

Izuku huffed. Hitoshi leaned forward and whispered: “Guess someone shouldn’t have tried to be a flunkie.” “Screw you.” “Ooooh.” Izuku rolled his eyes. Yeah, he sort of expected this. It was the written portion. The second Izuku’s eyes landed on that test he knew he wasn’t passing it. That being said, he wasn’t worried about the training camp at all. Why? Because as his fellow failures cried to their classmates, wishing them a good time at camp, Dad cleared his throat, effectively shutting them all up, and said:

“Of course not going to the training camp was a logical ruse.” Izuku flinched as the other five failures shouted out in shock. Dad nodded. “After all, it is those who failed that need the most training. You six who failed will have to take extra courses and extra training while we are there so be prepared.” Collective groan. “I need all of your permission forms turned in by Wednesday.”

Izuku raised his hand. Dad looked at him. “Yours has already been signed.” Izuku lowered his hand. He blushed as a few chuckles and giggles were shared around the classroom.

“Lastly, Absol is delivering the packing list,” Dad stated. “Now, those of you who had gotten camping gear assigned to you for the exam, you can use what you need from those and just turn in everything in one go after camp though some things you might still need like shoes or a bathing suit you may want to go out and get. That is all on that for now.”

After school, while they were all changing out of their hero costumes, boy’s and girl’s locker rooms separated of course, Kaminari spoke up. “Jiro texted me. She says that some of the girls are planning on going to the mall after school tomorrow to get everything they need. Anyone want to go?” Izuku paused as he slid off his white top in the showers.  _ I think I have everything I need. Maybe a swimming suit but… _ he blushed,  _ I don’t really want to go shopping with everyone to find one. _

* **Ding Ding** * Izuku folded his shirt and stored it in his costume case before checking his phone.

  
  


**Uraraka** :

I’m not going to the mall with everyone. Want to go read Regions Rose somewhere?

  
  


\- Izuku switched messages to Dad. He hesitated a bit before sending it off. It felt weird to just  _ ask _ for things, even if it was just going out to read a book with a friend. -

  
  


**Izuku** :

Uraraka wants to know if we can go somewhere to read tomorrow. Can I?

**Shouta** :

Sure.

I’ll have to run it by Nedzu but it should be fine.

**Izuku** :

Thanks.

  
  


\- He switched back to Uraraka. -

  
  


**Izuku** :

Sure.

**Uraraka** :

Great! Meet me after school tomorrow outside of the school!

  
  


Izuku smiled softly to himself.  _ Dad said yes. _ He looked back at his messages between himself and Dad. ‘Shouta’ was still the man’s name in his phone. Izuku couldn’t bring himself to change it. His smile fell.  _ It will be okay. _ Izuku popped his head around the corner, making sure his exposed torso was still hidden. “I won’t be going to the mall,” he informed them. “I have everything I need.” They all nodded, for once accepting that answer as not because he didn’t want to pester his father and instead knowing that he probably actually did have everything because of who his father is.

…

…

…

Izuku and Uraraka are like the two opposite spectrums of UA Trainer’s Academy Students. Or well, Iida would be more of a contrast to Izuku but Iida was neither here nor there and it was Izuku and Uraraka who were walking side by side the next day after school. She had her uniform on all clean and pretty while as Izuku had his blazer and tie stashed away, his white button up shirt unbuttoned and untucked with a long black sleeve one under it tucked into his uniform pants, the UA belt exchanged for a black one, and then, of course, his plethora of piercings and a chain necklace with his hair gelled. Oh, and his glasses. Uraraka had the single green pearl earring but that didn’t really count for much. Truly two different spectrums walking side by side down the streets of Lumiose City.

“So where are we going?” Izuku asked. Uraraka pointed ahead. “There is a bakery me and Floette have been frequenting recently.” The small flower pokemon chirped from her resting position on Chip’s head who was trotting beside Izuku. “The coffee there is really good and the atmosphere is peaceful.” Izuku raised an eyebrow. “You sound like some sort of professional on cafes.” Uraraka snorted. She covered her mouth, blushing deeply. Izuku chuckled. “Why are you covering that? You literally saw me have a panic attack over thinking I was on fire when I wasn’t. Pretty silly, huh? I’d say that’s more embarrassing.” The brunette blanched. “Izuku, that’s no-”

“Besides, it’s cute,” he cut in, effectively silencing the girl. Uraraka blushed deeper. “Uh- erm- thank you?” She looked ahead, averting her eyes from him. “Ah! There it is!” Uraraka jogged forward and held her hands out to a small sign hanging above a door. Izuku walked up and read the sign aloud. “Soft Blossom Bakery,” he read. “Sounds girly.” Uraraka rolled her eyes. “Whatever. Let’s go in.”

* **Ring Ring** *

The bell on the door rang as the Uraraka opened it. A middle-aged brunette woman with yellow eyes and freckles popped up from behind the display case. “Welcome to Soft Blossom Bakery! Ah! Uraraka!” Uraraka skipped up. “Afternoon, Mare!” Izuku followed in, looking around the small eatery. It had pale yellow walls with a dark wood trim. There were a few sofas in the back right corner, a chair and table set next to the front of the bakery on that side. On the left there was a bar attached to the wall with a few bar stools. In the middle there were a few chairs and tables throughout. The peaceful piano music in the background was calming. “Who is this?” ‘Mare’ asked. Uraraka gestured to Izuku. “These are my friends from school.” Izuku raised a hand casually and put it down. His friend chuckled awkwardly.  _ What? Am I supposed to be all chummy with her or something? _ “Well, welcome to my quaint little shop. I am Takakawa Mary Lou but most call me Mare. What can I get you?”

Izuku wasn’t particularly a fan of coffee so he ordered a hot chocolate and- “What is this?” he pointed into one of the display cases. Takakawa looked over. Uraraka was already seated at the chairs in front of the couch set with her ‘usual’: A caramel mocha. “Ah, they are something new I was trying,” the bakery lady sighed. “They’re strawberry macarons with dark chocolate filling. I don’t think they will last long. No one seems to want to try them.” Izuku didn’t know about other people but that sounded heavenly. He peeked into his pocket. Dad had given him a bit of cash to go out on. It felt so foreign to him to be able to do this but Dad insisted on him ‘having a good time.’ “I’ll get a set,” he decided. A set came with four. Takakawa looked stunned. “Sorry, I just didn’t take you for the type!” She could out the small, decorated case they came in. Izuku shrugged. “Most don’t.” That makes sense, considering his appearance. “Tell me what you think when you leave!”

Izuku gave an uncommitted hum as he took his purchases over to where Uraraka was sitting. He sat across from her. Chip curled up in his lap under the table. Floette sat on the table next to Uraraka.

“Alright, so I have already started this,” Uraraka said, “but I stopped after we decided to read together so we will start at the front.” Izuku nodded. “Sounds good.”

And that’s what they did. They decided that every time they met they would each read a chapter. Uraraka started off first, reading the first chapter of Regions Rose while Izuku, Chip, and Floette listened. He looked around Soft Blossom Bakery as Uraraka’s voice drawled on. It was empty. Takakawa was just doing busy work such as wiping down tables and making the counter and display case look more presentable. _Is it not doing well?_ _That’s a shame. These are really good. What did she call them? Macarons?_ Izuku snuck one under the table to Chip. Chip agreed on that statement very much. _So is the hot chocolate._ He glanced up at Uraraka, taking a sip of hot chocolate to hide his gaze. A smile spread across his lips.

_ This is nice. _

____________________________

Ochaco glanced up as she read. She smiled. The greenette hand his head against the wall of the bakery, eyes closed. A small smile rested on his face. In his hand he was twirling a plastic spoon. Under the table she could hear Chip snoozing just a bit.

She took in the dark bags under her friend’s closed eyes.  _ This was a good idea. _

Ochaco discovered Soft Blossom Bakery a week before school started as she was just moving into Lumiose City. She was instantly drawn to the peaceful atmosphere and the kind owner, Takakawa Mary Lou. It was cheap, too, so easy on Ochaco’s tight budget. She had considered applying for a job here but she quickly found out that the bakery wasn’t doing well at all. She doesn’t think Mare has the money to hire an employee.

Though the financial state of Soft Blossom Bakery isn’t well, Ochaco knew that this was the perfect place to bring Izuku and Chip. It was practically empty most of the time. It would be good for the two to find a place outside of school and home. He had basically secluded himself after the court case. He still hung out with them and talked at school but it was obvious he felt the pressure of his past still on him. Maybe this way he can start becoming a normal teenager again.

Ochaco slipped the bookmark in and closed the book. “I’m done,” she stated. Green eyes opened. Ochaco smiled and slid over the book. “Your turn.”

____________________________

Izuku yawned. He stretched his arms over his head and stood. He had just finished reading chapter two of Regions Rose. It wasn’t really his forte but Uraraka seemed to like it and it was relaxing to just sit and read like this.

“So? Do you like it so far?” Uraraka asked. Floette floated up and settled on the brunette’s shoulder. Izuku shrugged. “It wasn’t bad.” The girl smiled. “We should make this a weekly thing. Let’s see… We have camp next week but the week after? Same day, same time?”

Izuku stared at her.  _ She actually wants to? _ He felt his heart twist. Izuku smiled. “Sure. Sounds good.” They deposited their trash and headed to the door. Izuku stopped with his hand on the door. He looked over his shoulder. “Takakawa?” The woman in question popped her head out of the kitchen in the back. “The macarons were good.” He smirked when her face lit up. 

He and Uraraka made their way toward their respective destinations. The girl looked up to the sky. “I wonder how our classmates are doing at the mall.”

____________________________

“So? Where is your little green friend?”

Hitoshi is  _ terrified. _

\-----

_ ‘Hey! You are that kid from the Sports Festival!’ _

_ Hitoshi, Ash, and Kaminari turned around. Kaminari pointed between them. ‘Which?’ _

_ A pastel purple-haired man and a pink-haired woman walked up. Hitoshi didn’t like their too wide smile at all. _

\-----

He doesn’t remember how they got him alone. Kaminari needed something in this store, Ash in another, and then it was just these ‘fans’. Only they weren’t fans. These were villains. Now he sat on the edge of the mall fountain, a gun well hidden behind ruffles of clothing pressed to his side by the man and the woman’s arm wrapped tightly around his shoulder.

“Wh- who do you mean?” Hitoshi struggled to keep calm. The man, he called himself Jonathan McCalister, sighed. “Don’t play ignorant with me, kid. You know the one with the crippled Eevee. What was his name? Midoriya?” Hitoshi’s eyes widened.  _ These… These are the people after Izuku! _ The man smirked. “I like that expression. So you know who I am talking about.” Hitoshi grit his teeth. “Even if I did, I wouldn’t tell you.”

The woman, Jessica Mober, Kantoians(?) maybe(?) not Kalos-like names(?), poked his cheek with her sharp nail. “Oh, I think you will unless you’d prefer a bullet in your side.” To drive home her point, Jonathan pressed the barrel of the gun harder to his side. Hitoshi felt himself beginning to panic. “I- I’ll call the police.” “While bleeding out?” “Someone here w- will.” Mober hummed. “Maybe. But,” she grabbed his face tightly and forced him to look up and around the crowded mall, “in that time how many do you think we could kill first?” Hitoshi’s heart dropped. “That pistol holds six bullets. One in you, five in some random passersby, who knows, maybe a friend? Our pokemon, our quirks, they are all unknown to you. Think about how much damage we could do. Just how much blood do you think we can spill on a Tuesday evening like this, hmm?” She smirked wryly. “Just how much of it do you want on your hands?”

The teen dropped his head when she let go. He struggled not to let tears fill his eyes. “Now, I’ll ask again, where is Midoriya?” Hitoshi took a shaky breath. “H- he’s not here,” he stated confidently.

“Then where is he?”

“I don’t know.”

“Where does he live?”

Hitoshi’s fists curled tightly. “I don’t know.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“I really don’t,” he pressed. “No one has visited him after the court case.”

The villains sighed. “You know, you aren’t really making us want to kill you any less.” Hitoshi found a bit of backbone. “Well it’d be the same if I gave you false information, right?” The villains were silent before they burst out laughing. “Get a hold of this kid!” Jonathan cackled. “Thinking you’re some big shot now?” A shiver went down Hitoshi’s spine.  _ Please… Please! _

“ **Shinsou!** ” All three heads snapped up. Kaminari, oblivious as ever, came running up with a bag. Hitoshi could have cried in relief right then and there. “Oh? Who are these? Friends?” Hitoshi opened his mouth to speak when the gun was removed from his side and stowed secretly in Jonathan’s coat pocket. The villains stood. “Yup, yup!” Jessica stretched. “Well, it was nice speaking with you,  _ Shinsou _ . I guess we best be going. Tootles!”

Hitoshi watched them leave in shocked silence. They rounded the corner to a different section of the mall. “Shinsou?” Kaminari waved his hand in front of the shaken boy’s face. Hitoshi snatched it from the air, holding it tightly. “Woah, dude, you good?” “Call the police…” he whispered. Kaminari leaned back. “Bro, you-” Hitoshi turned to the boy with fear lacing his eyes and fear lacing his voice when he all but screamed:

“CALL THE FREAKING POLICE!”

____________________________

_ Dad’s not home. _

Izuku unlocked the front door of the house and walked in. He always kept it unlocked, something inside of him always holding him back from locking it. Dad should be home soon anyway.  _ Well, maybe. _ Izuku checked the wall clock.  _ He didn’t say he had a meeting today and he is usually home much earlier than this. _

Izuku let out Pepper and Smokey. He felt shivers run down his spine. Izuku looked over his shoulder at the door. Then at the windows to the backyard. He sped walked over and drew the blinds closed. He looked back at the front door.  _ I should lock the door. _

\-----

_ ‘Please! Don’t leave me here! Let me out!’ _

\-----

He slowly walked toward it.  _ No one is even here. Right, they won’t be able to lock me out. It locks from the inside. It’s okay. It’s okay… _ His finger touched the lock.

\-----

_ ‘Please…’ _

\-----

Izuku turned right back around.  _ On second thought… _ “Let’s go to the sewing room, guys!” The greenette glanced back over his shoulder at the door as they left the room.  _ It’ll be okay. It  _ is _ okay.  _ It’s okay… Izuku never liked being home alone. It made him feel uneasy. Like something would walk right through the door and attack him just like always. Dad told him he should lock the door but he couldn’t. It made the feeling even worse. Just the thought of it made his anxiety spike and he felt like throwing up. Dad on the other hand was the opposite. Izuku is sure he locks the doors when the greenette is asleep and unlocks them before Izuku knows about it when they wake up. The man’s own set of triggers and PTSD leaves him uneasy with it unlocked. An odd combination the pair make.

He passes the hallway closet. It still has a yellow sheet over it and the doorknob is still missing and yet Izuku still shivers at the thought of it.

He makes quick work past it and enters his sewing room door. It’s like a breath of relief when he closes it and the closet can leave his mind. Association therapy is something they put on a requirement for Izuku’s potential therapist. Almost everything he sees Izuku can’t help but think of it as something else. Like Dad… The boy shakes his head. “Okay! Let’s get to work!” Izuku always does his homework first before turning to his online design school. While he practices his stitching, lies in the corner of the room heating it up naturally. Izuku might not like fire in the slightest but the cold can be worse sometimes. It reminds him of the cold of the basement, all of those years freezing with nothing but a thin sheet to cover him. Pepper bats around a scroll of ribbon that Izuku is sure he will have to reroll when he is done. Chip sits on the work bench by Izuku watching over the stitching process, giving a few yips or growls when something is finished or is out of line.

Sewing like this, he felt in his element. (ha ha irony at its finest.) He felt calm…

____________________________

Shouta drove home fresh from the police station. He was called away by Kaminari of all people. Apparently they were at the mall and Hitoshi got cornered by villains.  _ Great _ . Now he was stressed, worried, and extraordinarily tired because he was woken up from his nap that he needs for nightly patrols so yay. 

He pulled up to his house. Shouta pressed his forehead against the steering wheel.  _ I do not want to have this conversation with Izuku. I do NOT WANT THIS CONVERSATION! _ Shouta side-glanced the house. He sighed long and loud, his pokemon mimicking the noise in the seats behind him. “Let’s go.” He got out of the car. Shouta always makes sure to send Izuku a message before coming home. It sort of prepares them for seeing him or something, as sickening as it sounds. Shouta knocks on the front door still and opens it.  _ It’s not locked. Freaking villains are looking for him as we speak and it’s not locked! _ He looks up at the blinds covering the backyard sliding window doors and sighs.  _ No, calm down. This is normal.  _ Shouta knows about this. Izuku can’t physically lock the door. It literally brought the boy to his knees once, staring at the door in blatant fear. It was as if Shouta was asking himself to lock himself up again and, well, they all saw just how  _ splendidly _ that went with the closet.

“Izuku, I’m home!” he called into the silent house. Something itched at the back of his mind. It was quiet. Too quiet. The door was unlocked, villains were searching for him at the mall today, Izuku was home alone aside from his pokemon. He  _ needed _ to see his son. “Izuku?”

He heard a door in the house open. Shouta waited in tense silence. “Welcome home,” the familiar voice called and the man let out a breath of relief. Izuku entered the living room. He was dressed differently. Izuku wore grey sweats and a loose fitting t-shirt untucked. His hair was held back with a hair clip, still too short to put in a ponytail. His glasses were still on too. He wore a pair of fluffy green slippers and his piercings were out. It was comfort clothes. He also looked more relaxed. Izuku ws in his sewing room working. He always dressed comfortably when he sewed. At home he typically had his glasses off but he needed them for sewing.

Shouta wanted so badly to lock the door right now but if he did, especially with the upcoming conversation, things might turn out poorly and Izuku looked so calm Shouta didn’t want to ruin this peaceful mood he was in. 

“How are you?” Shouta asks, taking off his shoes. His pokemon filter into the house. Izuku shrugs. “Fine.”  _ Fine, he says.  _ He wasn’t ‘okay’. He was ‘fine’ meaning that he was actually okay right now. Izuku was in a really good mood right now and Shouta had to break it.  _ Maybe not. He is in a good mood. I could just not tell him and go over it tomorrow in school and everything will be- _ “Where were you?” - _ SUCK! _ Shouta stood. “At the police station.” Izuku stared at him. Shouta stared back. “Why…?”

Izuku and Chip slept with Shouta that night and Seviper went around locking the doors and windows when they fell asleep. 

____________________________

“Are you okay?”

“Yes.”

“Are you sure?”

“Izuku, I’m okay.”

“You weren’t hurt o- or-”

“Izuku, I’m  _ fine _ .” This seemed to shut the greenette up. Hitoshi sighed. He glanced down at Izuku’s ever-twitching hand.  _ So Shouta told him what happened then. _ If Hitoshi was being honest, he wasn’t all that fine but he was more fine, or ‘okay’, then whatever the heck Izuku was so he wasn’t going to say that out loud. The purple-haired boy sat up from his position slouched over his desk. “I was a bit shaken up,” he states, “but honestly I’m just more worried about you. I don’t know how they found out about our class going to the mall but it’s obvious they are trying to track you.”

The greenette looked down. “I-” “Don’t you  _ dare  _ apologize, Izuku,” Hitoshi snapped. The greenette flinched harshly.  _ Ah, I’m too tired for this. That was a bit harsh.  _ “It’s not your fault,” he says a bit softer.  _ It’s not anyone’s but that piece of junk that called himself your father for fifteen years’. _ But Hitoshi didn’t say that.

The classroom door opened and in walked Shouta. Kaminari and Ash hovered a bit longer as they had been all morning, worried about Hitoshi after how shaken up he was yesterday, but they eventually went to their seats. Ash tapped him on his shoulder with a fist lightly as he left. Hitoshi shot him a grateful glance.

Shouta let out a bedraggled sigh.  _ Yeah, if I had to deal with Izuku after telling him about that I would be that way too. _ Not that Hitoshi was blaming Izuku, only that he could put the matching pair of eye bags together between the two and knew that the night couldn't have been very calming for them. It was more like common sense these days to know Izuku and Shouta didn’t exactly ‘sleep’ at night all that often as much as they passed out during the day from not sleeping at night. 

“So, I am sure you are all aware of what happened at the mall yesterday,” Shouta started. Those that weren’t there had already heard about it from their classmates that were there. “We don’t know how the villains are gathering information on our class,”  _ but we do know why _ , went unsaid, “but in lue of this threat we have decided to change up the camp location. It will still be happening next week but the location whereabouts are private and only a select handful of staff here at UA are privy to it. That being said, a few schedule changes are being made as well concerning that. We will instead meet up outside of the school at night on Sunday. There will be two buses outside waiting, one for Class 1-A and one for Class 1-B, and then we will be heading off. Before we do we will be taking all cellular devices and turning them off. We cannot risk being followed. Lastly, the emergency watches from your exam journey will all be reissued. I have them all labeled by your name and paired with my own,” Shouta held up his wrist to show them, “so that whenever you press it not only will the alert be sent to the school but also to me directly with your name and current health condition. We had the support course add that function based on heart pulse. Under no circumstances are you permitted to take these off during the camp. They are waterproof, fireproof, and shouldn’t be fried by electricity easily. Kaminari, we will probably have a hero watching you specifically because you will have to take yours off for training as your wattage output is higher than what it can handle. Finally, a buddy system will be put in place. Choose your buddy today and tell me by the end of homeroom. Any questions?”

That was all pretty straight forward so no one really had anything to ask and the class dove into their own conversations.

“So, obvious question,” Hitoshi laid his head back down on his desk. Izuku looked over his shoulder at the boy. “Wanna be my buddy?” Izuku didn’t respond. His fingers curled around the pencil in his hand but that only made the small jerks in his arms more prominent. Hitoshi raised an eyebrow. “Izuku, I wouldn’t be asking if I thought I was any danger because of you if that is what you are thinking.” The greenette had the audacity to look stunned.  _ A guilty conscience. It wasn’t your freaking fault! _ “We obviously aren’t in any danger, not with all of the safety measures they put up, so I don’t see why it’d be an issue unless…” Izuku tensed. Hitoshi pouted. “Unless you don’t want to be partners with me.” * **fake sniff** * Izuku turned all the way to him, arms flailing. “N- n- no! That’s not what I meant! I just-”

“So we are buddies then,” Hitoshi leaned up. Izuku’s mouth snapped shut. He sighed but his face softened. “I suppose I will have to put up with you then.” A smirk fell on Izuku’s face.

_ There we go. That’s a much better expression on you. _

Then it dropped.  _ Dang it. _ “But I didn’t pass the exam so-” “Well I didn’t either!” They looked over at Kaminari.  _ Double dang it. I want to be buddies with Izuku. _ “Be my buddy!” Green eyes flittered over to Hitoshi. He swallowed a sigh. “In the words of Aizawa Shouta the great-” Izuku snorted “-it would only be rational.”

So that is what happened. It wasn’t much to Hitoshi’s liking. He was worried and stressed. He just almost got shot the day before by the people chasing Izuku and now he couldn’t even keep an eye on his friend who seems to have, quite honestly, the worst luck on the face of this planet. And so he searched for a new ‘buddy’. People were paring up rather quickly and in the end it was just-

“Ah.” “Ah.”

Violet eyes met heterochromic eyes. Hitoshi doesn’t have anything against Todoroki, in fact they get along well, both quiet and reserved (unless around Izuku or Serena), but he isn’t sure about having to spend an entire week being his ‘buddy’ for the buddy system. They would have to go everywhere together and all that jazz and Hitoshi feels it would be much more comfortable if someone was to fill the void of silence that two introverted people sitting alone together would have. Someone like *couch cough* Izuku? Hitoshi resists the urge to glare at the back of Kaminari’s head. He surely could have come up with a compromise to Izuku not being able to follow the same schedule because of not passing the exams if only Kaminari hadn’t popped his head in right then and there but alas, Hitoshi would have to settle.

“Something tells me you don’t have a buddy,” Hitoshi walks up to Todoroki. The bi-colored teen shrugs. “Something tells me the same about you.”  _ Smug little… _ “So I guess we are buddies.” “I suppose so.”

…

…

…

_ Internal, eternal sigh… _

____________________________

_ Round two _ , Izuku thought to himself as he packed his bags once again for another camping trip. The last one went well. He looked over at Pepper who was chasing Smokey’s paw. It went  _ really _ well. So did this week in preparation for the next one, aside from, you know, finding out he failed the written portion of the exam. What a load of bologna. No, it was true. He isn’t dumb, per se. Actually, Izuku knows he is smart. If he had paid attention in school and not skipped for the past eight or seven years of his life then maybe things would be different. But he did skip.

Mr. Midoriya was right. He should have been a better student. A better child. He should have been better. Should have obeyed. It would have been oka-

“Izuku,” he flinched. He couldn’t bring his eyes to meet his father’s. Dad, in the doorway of his bedroom, took a sharp breath, probably realizing the tense state of Izuku’s mind. He squeezed his green eyes shut at the approaching footsteps. They stopped across from him and his bag. Daring to dare, Izuku forced open one eye only to meet a white t-shirt that read ‘T-Shirt’. What? He thought it was funny. Izuku looked up. Dad was holding it out to him, crouching in front of him. They stared at each other. Izuku tried to find Mr. Midoriya’s cold gaze in those black eyes but more recently he hasn’t been able to in Dad’s eyes.

“Vee!” Chip wriggled up through his arms and took the shirt from Dad. He stuffed it into the black suitcase Izuku was packing. The greenette chuckled. “Th- thanks.” 

Dad ended up helping to pack for camp. It was a silent promise that this camp was good and that he wasn’t going to punish Izuku for enjoying himself and going to it like a normal teenager would without reservation. 

____________________________

Shouta grabbed the car keys off of the kitchen counter. He and Izuku had to leave a bit earlier because they had to be first. He is the homeroom teacher after all.

Shouta looked out at the night sky.

He held eye contact with Izuku, while the boy was obviously a bit shaken up, mind you, for a good fifteen seconds and Izuku didn’t shy away from it. The way his eyes moved between Shouta’s spoke of his will to get past this barrier he has. To search and find the truth that Shouta knew was there: that he wasn’t Mr. Midoriya. And Izuku found it. Shouta’s heart swelled.

Izuku looked at him and saw Shouta! Take that, Mr. Midoriya!

____________________________

* **yaaaaaaaawn** *

Dad glanced over from the driver’s seat of the car. “You can sleep on the way. I am sure most of your classmates will be sleeping too.” Izuku hummed. Nevertheless, he leaned his head on the glass. Neither he nor Chip in his lap slept. It was still a bit unfamiliar for them to. Dad understood it though the man didn’t like the reason for it. Sometimes ‘training’ would go on until midnight like this and then he’d have to wake up at two to make the bus. Dad wasn’t too pleased at this news.

\-----

_ ‘So you came to school with about two, maybe one, hour of sleep every day?’ _

_ … _

_ ‘After training at school and then the abuse at home?’ _

_ … _

_ ‘Izuku…’ _

\-----

They started getting him on a  _ much _ better sleep schedule than that one. Nearing the end of his stay with the Midoriya’s he couldn’t even sleep on the bus to and from school. The nicotine withdrawals were keeping him awake. It was still there a bit but the patches were helping and he almost didn’t need them anymore. Now it was basically just regular ol’ insomnia and nightmares that kept him, Chip, and Smokey up at night. Poor Pepper. She was none the wiser to all of this turmoil when she so adamantly decided on joining their party.

Dad drove through the back gate of UA and parked in the faculty parking lot. They each had a suitcase and a backpack of their own. It will be different from the exam camping and that is all Izuku knows. Even he wasn’t privy to the information on where the training camp was going to be. All he knew was that he didn’t need the sleeping bag or the tent or the cooking gear. All that was replaced with a pillow and blanket and a swimming suit.

\-----

_ ‘Daaaad! This is embarrassing!’ Izuku hid in the dressing rooms at the mall. _

_ ‘This was bound to happen sometime!’ Kayama laughed from next to his father. She just  _ had  _ too come along for swimsuit shopping. (and get a new one of her own) _

_ Izuku sighed and opened the curtain. He couldn’t find any way in heaven or on earth that this was necessary. _

\-----

A blush settled on his cheeks at the thought. Gratefully the dark hid it well.

\-----

_ Dad and Kayama pursed their lips when he opened the curtain. He tried to cover the scars. He did! But there wasn’t much he could do when there were so many and he was literally shirtless. More than half the skin under his clothes was rough, malformed from improperly healed burns. The rest was in some way, shape, or form marked by either claw mark, whip mark, or other. _

_ ‘I don’t think purple is his color,’ Kayama finally decided. _

\-----

Izuku ended up with a black bodysuit with green lines. It went to his elbows and his knees. He just didn’t feel all that comfortable showing off everything just yet. He had already exposed himself in front of his classmates one too many times. It was better if they didn’t see the decorations Mr. Midoriya permanently put on his body.

They made their way to the front of UA, crossing the silent grounds, where two buses were waiting for them. Outside of one was Class 1-B’s teacher: Vlad King. Izuku had met the light grey-haired man a few times in passing. It was strange to see him out of costume though. Dad wasn’t that bad because his costume, well, was a black jumper and a scarf. What can he say?

“‘Raser!” he called. His voice was rough and scratchy but despite the force behind it sort of quite. They were trying to be undercover after all. “And little ‘Raser,” he greeted Izuku. The greenette gave a small bow. He is learning to be respectful to adults, thank you very much. Dad pats his shoulder. “I’ll put your stuff in the under carry. Go take a seat. Me and Vlad have things to discuss.” Izuku nodded. He put down everything just as Dad said and boarded the bus. Dad would most likely sit upfront. Should Izuku? But Kaminari probably is the type to sit in the back and goof off. Is he being too clingy to Dad? Izuku glances out of the window at his father. He catches Dad’s eye for a split second.

\-----

_ Black eyes glared at the little boy as the man passed sending ice down Izuku’s back. _

\-----

_ Ah… _ Izuku moves to the back.

\-----

_ Honorary Rule #4: Sit in the back. _

\-----

So he does. He knows no one is here yet but Izuku and Chip still look for a thumbtack on the chair. When there is none directly visible, Chip jumps on it and lightly presses down in a few spaces. “Vee,” he confirms nothing is there and so Izuku sits and Chip settles on his lap. Soon enough students gradually began coming, filtering in like shadows in the night. Dad checked them off on a board and they put their luggage in the under carry and got on. A few gave their greetings but most were tired from the early rise or some, most actually, just didn’t go to sleep like himself.

“Bro, I totally thought you would be sitting up front,” Izuku looked up at Kaminari’s voice. “I looked everywhere for ya!” The greenette was a bit shocked by the quietness of his voice. Actually, looking around, everyone seemed a bit tense. It was scary, he supposes, that they had to go through this.  _ If only I wasn’t around they could have a normal trip… _ Kaminari, as his ‘buddy’, plopped himself right next to Izuku. “S- sorry,” Izuku apologized. “I figured that you’d like it better back here.” Kaminari pats his shoulder. “No worries, my dude.” He let out a big yawn. “But if ya don’t mind, I think Imma snooze on the way.” Izuku shrugged.

Finally, once everyone boarded, Dad got on. He didn’t have to do anything but clear his throat to get their attention. “I know this seems a bit awkward and scary but it is for your safety. We are all on now and the bus is soundproof so feel free to enjoy yourselves now but please do be courteous of the others on the bus who may be trying to sleep. I recommend you do that yourself because once we get to our destination I can’t say there will be much time for relaxing. We have a six and a half hour trip so get comfortable.”

And without further ado, they took off.

Many of the kids of both Class 1-A and Class 1-B alike fell asleep almost immediately. Class 1-B was on the bus behind them. Some played on their phones or game devices, listened to music, or just looked out the window. Izuku and Chip did that. This reminded him of the early mornings at two o’clock going to school like he used to do only now he isn’t on the bus alone or, near the end, with Bakugo. He licked his lips. He used to smoke a lot around this time too. The patch scratched against his black undershirt reminding him of its existence. The greenette sighed and closed his eyes, leaning his head on the glass. A bump in the road had the sleeping Kaminari slipping and leaning against Izuku, head on his shoulder. 

After a good hour or so of looking out of the window, the quiet snores of his classmates gently lured Izuku and Chip into a light sleep.

…

…

…

“HA HA HA!” Izuku furrowed his eyebrows to the sound of laughter on the bus. “Shh! Don’t wake him!”  _ Ashido? _ “Ope! Sorry!”  _ Kaminari? _ The sound of a video played nearby and then more laughing. The bus was alight with noise. Light coming through the window hit his eyelids. He lifted his head with a groan, neck stiff from the poor position. “Aw, sorry, man,” Izuku looked around blearily towards the voice. Kirishima from the seat over waved. Izuku gave a sloppy wave back. “It’s okay,” he mumbled. “What time is it?” Kaminari checked his phone. “6:54.” Izuku hummed.  _ So we’ve been on the bus about six hours now.  _ They left at one in the morning. 

Kaminari held something out. “Pocky?”  _ Well, since I’m up I minus well enjoy. _

The rest of the trip, which was about half an hour, wasn’t all that eventful. They, or more like the more cheerful bunch, chatted and took funny selfies. They got Izuku and Chip to join in on them too near the end. Izuku looks down at the picture Ashido just sent to his phone. It was of him, Kaminari, Sero, Kirishima, and oddly enough Bakugo having been dragged in by Kirishima, his ‘buddy’, and they all had animal filters on.

“What’s with that serious face, Izuku?” Ashido asked. He looked up at her. “Was it serious?” She nodded sharply. “You were all like-” she made a blank face before light up again “-that!” Izuku hummed, tilting his head. “Nothing really, I guess. I was just thinking that these past two weeks have been really good.” Kaminari wrapped his arm around Izuku’s shoulder and threw his arm out exaggeratedly. “My friend, this is just the start. This week of camp and many more years of good days.” He smirked at the greenette. “And you got me as your buddy so get ready for a world of fun.”

Izuku smiled. “I look forward to it!”

He didn’t know it but just about everyone within hearing range got a big mood lift from that. It was good seeing Izuku happy. It felt like more times than not nowadays he wasn’t. A silent: ‘ _ Good job, Kaminari, _ ’ went around the bus that day.

The bus came to a jerky stop almost tossing everyone out of their seats. Izuku rubbed his nose that planted into the seat in front of him. “I thought Dad drove better than that,” he groaned. Kaminari laughed. “Guess we are here!” The students began to file off. Izuku felt a sense of foreboding that stopped his feet just before stepping off of the bus. He looked over his shoulder at Dad who was just standing from the driver’s seat. “Something wrong?” Izuku’s fist curled at his side.  _ Something… _ “IzUkU!!!” He jumped and skittered off the bus to his buddy. 

____________________________

Shouta followed his son off of the bus. 

_ Ah, Izuku. Sometimes your gut instinct scares me. You caught on way too fast. _

He smirked behind his scarf.

____________________________

“What’s up?” Kaminari asked when he joined him. Izuku shook his head. “Nothing.”  _ I think. _ “Weren’t we supposed to stop at a camp?” He looks around. “I can’t imagine with all of the security measures they put in place we would be camping here.” Kaminari shrugged. “Rest break?” Izuku hummed.  _ No. I don’t think so. Did Class 1-B take a different route? _

“Woah-ho-ho! What do we have here?!” All heads whipped to the sound of approaching people.

A woman with blonde hair and a blue tutu jumped and slid to a stop in front of them. “Rocking with these gazes!” A woman with short, auburn hair and a red version of the outfit slid in beside her. “We’re lending a helping paw!” Blonde waved her hands with paw gloves on. “We’ve come from somewhere not here.” Auburn folded her arms. “Stingily cute and catlike!” A Delcatty and Glameow burst from pokeballs and together the girls yelled: “We are the Wild, Wild Pussycats!”

If they were expecting applause, they didn’t get any. Instead they got a handful of dumbfounded students and a larger handful of battle-stanced students. Izuku grit his teeth.  _ It’s supposed to be safe! _

“Err…” The blonde woman slid into a normal standing position. Dad sighed and walked up. “It is just their introduction,” he said. “They are fine.” A collective breath of relief echoed throughout the class. Izuku put a hand over his chest as his heart pounded heavily in it. Chip looked up at the sky tiredly.  _ SeRiOuSlY?! _ “Wow, Eraserhead, your class is sure hardcore!” Auburn stated. “They’ve been through the ringer,” he stated. She nodded and walked up. “Heya, I’m Mandalay of the Wild, Wild Pussy Cats. This is my teammate Pixie-Bob.” Izuku caught Hitoshi staring in aw at their cat ear pieces and fake paws. “Our other teammates, Tiger and Ragdoll, are with your other class. We will be overseeing your training camp at our mountain lodge! Be assured, with our array of quirks you will be safe!”

Iida raised his hand. “Then would this happen to be the lodge? Pardon me, but I do not see one.” A smirk grew on the heroines’ faces. Izuku tensed up. “Well you see,” Pixie-Bob pointed across the forest that was below the cliff they were on, “the lodge is over there. Let’s see, it’s about eight now? If you can get there by noon, lunch is on us!”

…

“Eh?” Kaminari tilted his head. Pixie-Bob slammed her hands on the ground. It began to shake. Izuku paled. “Get to the bus!” Like moths to a flame, the students of Class 1-A scurried away from the edge. Pixie-Bob laughed. “Good luck!” And the ground beneath their feet gave way. Izuku could barely see through the rain of dirt and small rocks that sent them tumbling into the forest below. He heard the sound of pokemon being released through the roar of earth. “Chip!” he cried out. “Leafeon!” Just as they breached the dirt and they found the tops of the trees coming at them at a rapid rate, Izuku felt his body begin to change. Before he even completely evolved, he threw out his vines from the leaves growing on his arms. One he shot out and wrapped around Kaminari’s waist. He yanked the yellow-haired boy to him. “Woah!” Izuku shot the other out just as he hit the leaves. He kept it short and wrapped it around a thick branch. Izuku shut his eyes tightly as the ground came at him. He and Kaminari jolted when the vine went taunt, stopping their descent. He heard more and more of his classmates catch their fall before all went silent.

“Whew! You really saved my hide there, Izuku!” Viridian eyes fluttered open and met yellow. Kaminari, still pulled tightly to his side, grinned back. The greenette let out a sigh. “That was so reckless…” He lowered them to the ground slowly. Looking to the side, Chip was jumping from branch to branch in a nearby tree. They landed and Izuku let Kaminari go. 

“What the heck!” Bakugou pointed at the sky. “You tryin’ ta kill us?!”

* **RuMbLe** *

They all paled. “I- it was a joke,” Bakugou whispered. Before them grew a giant beast out of the ground. Izuku pulled Smokey’s pokeball from his belt and let the Houndoom out. He let out a low chuckle. “I told you adults were untrustworthy.” Kirishima punched his hand. “First ones to the lodge win!” And just like that, they were off. “Let’s go, Chip!” He and Chip jumped on Smokey’s back. “Kaminari!” The giant beast reached forward. Izuku reached out his hand. The blonde reached up and took it. “Smokey, go!” And off the Houndoom went. “WAHHHH!” Izuku laughed, pulling his friend up just before the beast’s hand smashed them. 

____________________________

Denki wrapped his arms around Izuku’s waist, eyes tightly shut as they whipped through the forest. More and more monsters began forming before them and trying to crush them.  _ This is insane! This is stupid! This is- _

“WAH HA HA!”

Denki opened his eyes and looked up. Izuku had his hands in the air, a smile splitting his face. “Vee!” Chip stood on Smokey’s head in between the horns, ears whipping back. The greenette’s eyes were lit with an excitement and joy Denki has never seen before. “This is amazing!” Izuku laughed. “How have I never seen this side before?!”

Denki sat up. He copied Izuku, tightening his legs around Smokey’s abdomen and letting go with his arms.  _ This side…  _ He laughed. “This side is pretty great, right?!” Izuku looked over his shoulder and flashed another big grin. “It is!” Denki looked around.  _ Yeah, this side of the light is pretty great. _ He couldn’t help it. Izuku’s laughter was contagious.

And then the ground beneath them lurched up and they were all thrown apart.

____________________________

Shouta checked the time once again. It was 5:43 in the evening. The sun was almost below the tree line, getting darker as the year was soon to be coming to a close. None of his students had breached the forest yet. Ragdoll, the teal-haired and yellow-dressed Wild, Wild Pussycat, pat his shoulder. “Don’t worry, Eraserhead! I’ve got them all in my sight!”

Her ‘sight.’ Ragdoll’s quirk, Search, allowed her to track the positions and conditions of up to 100 people in her vicinity which usually spanned to the area of this mountain. Right now she was watching his class on the left and Vlad King’s on the right. They had taken different routes to the camp and started their students off in different places at similar distances but the objective was the same. Of course they wouldn’t reach here by noon. Pixie-Bob with her quirk, Earth Flow, that allowed her to manipulate the earth at will was making sure of that. 

He hummed and walked over to Mandalay. She was the most normal one he decided. Tiger was, well, Tiger. He was a hulking man in a maroon version of the cat suit which was a tutu and crop top which, sure, fine, you do you, but he was a little too eccentric for Shouta’s tastes. And loud. Ragdoll too. Pixie-Bob was busy but still a little loopy if Shouta said so himself. Mandalay was the most rational one, he decided. And the most calm. The short-haired woman was just coming out after checking the dinner they had made for the kids. 

“How’s he holding up?” he asked. ‘He’ was Mandalay’s four and a half year old nephew, Kouta, with black hair and a red cap that had two big yellow spikes on the front. A Corphish stood by his side. His parents and their pokemon were killed by a villain a little over half a year ago. The woman sighed and looked over at the boy who was sitting on the picnic table outside of the lodge brooding. “He shut off a lot when they died. Don’t expect him to be jumping over your students in awe. Kouta developed a deep hatred for heroes.”

Shouta looked up at the sky. “It’ll take time but I am sure he will learn to see that not all heroes are bad.” Mandalay looked over at him. “How can you be so sure?” Shouta smirked. “I have a bit of experience with children hating things.” He pat her shoulder. “Just give him time and be there for him when he needs you.”

“Here comes the first ones!” Ragdoll called to them. Shouta first saw the big, black paw. “Speak of the devil.” Smokey burst through the forest with an Izuku and Chip on his back. Izuku was facing backwards in Leafeon form with his vines stretched out. Kaminari came out next on a slab of bark holding on to the vines. He, unfortunately, did not have a way to stop his momentum and flew past them and ended up dragging Izuku off. They fell together in a heap of laughter. 

“Well that is certainly a new one,” Ragdoll murmured as the other students and their pokemon began to filter out of the forest. Class 1-B began exiting from the right. They all looked a bit worse for wear. Bakugou, ah dear Bakugou, pointed across the clearing at him. “You scumbag! You set us up!” Shouta shrugged. Mandalay leaned over. “Is that the one you have issues with hating?” Shouta shrugged. “No. He’s just like that.” Mandalay hummed and walked forward. “Well that took you all a lot longer than I thought!” she chirped. The students all stared her down but were too exhausted to glare. So she laughed at them. She’s a bit cooky too, Shouta supposes. “Don’t fret! We have made you dinner!” Just about everyone perked up at that. “But just tonight because tomorrow you are making it yourselves!” And… their faces fell again. She laughed again. “Go eat! We will check your injuries afterward. If there are any that need immediate attention come see me.”

A few from both classes did, some cuts deeper than others, but for the most part they all filtered into the lodge. Shouta heard Kouta grumble as they passed. “Bunch of stupid hero wannabees.” Izuku glanced over at the boy in passing, raising an unamused eyebrow. Mandalay watched him pass. “That one,” Shouta stated. “That one has the issue with hating people. Don’t worry, he doesn’t hate children so nothing will happen but same to you about the whole excitement thing. Don’t expect him to really like you or anything.” Mandalay nodded. “Gotcha.” She looked over her shoulder. “Kouta! Corphish! Time for dinner!”

____________________________

There was so. Much. FOOD.

“Come on, kitten!” Ragdoll bumped his shoulder. “You gotta eat more than that!” Izuku glared at her but held his tongue. She giggled and pranced off or something weird like that. All of the students around him were stuffing their faces. Don’t get him wrong. Izuku was hungry! Very hungry. Who wouldn’t be after that  _ lovely _ surprise journey through monster territory? But he had just gotten to the point of eating a whole meal and a light snack a day and  _ this _ was like three whole meals in one. 

He stared down at the fried Magikarp. His stomach twisted at the thought of taking just one more bite. Kaminari pointed his chopsticks at him. “A few more months on this side and you’ll be eating as much as me!” He stabbed a slab of the fish and popped it in his mouth. Ash tilted his head, mouth full. “Buth you areth spitting on the sameth side?” Hitoshi wapped the boy upside the head. “Talk or eat, pick one.”

Kaminari slung his arm around Izuku’s shoulders and grinned. “I guess you’ll never know!” Izuku snorted. He picked up another piece of fish. “I suppose I could eat a few more bites.”

After dinner they all unloaded the buses, like the adults couldn’t have done that in the hours they were enjoying in peace and rest while the teenagers had to fight for their lives in the forest. Class 1-A Boys and Class 1-B boys were split up into two different rooms but Class 1-A girls and Class 1-B girls were in the same room because of the low number of them. After that, for the first night, they had free time.

* **BANG** *

Kirishima slammed the door to the Class 1-A boy’s room. Sato, his buddy, was with him. “They have hot springs!” Ash pointed at them. “Ah! I’ve heard of those!” Izuku tilted his head. “I’ve heard of those too.” The black-haired boy looked at him. “Izuku, you are from Kalos.” Izuku nodded. “Yeah but I’ve never been in one. They don’t have those in Kanto, right?” Ash nodded excitedly. “I wanna try!”

Izuku watched as the boys all got up and gathered their bathing supplies. Kaminari looked over his shoulder. “Aren’t you coming, Izuku?” He swallowed thickly.  _ I have to stay with him but… _ Izuku rubbed his arms, averting his eyes. “I- I’m okay. I’m pretty tired after the whole forest thing so you guys go enjoy it.” He could feel their eyes on him. He hated it. He knew they would be on him even more if he did. They hadn’t seen under his costume before. They had only seen below his elbows and knees. They were bad, sure, but everything above, his chest, his stomach, his shoulders, they were all marred and distorted with ugly scars that never would heal.

“ **But it’s no fun on this side without you** .”

Izuku looked up slowly. Kaminari flashed him that signature grin. Hitoshi nodded from beside Todoroki. “Izuku, I think you know by now the only person who cares about how you look is Iida because you don’t wear the school uniform correctly.” The blue-haired boy in question turned his head away defiantly. “So come on.” “Yeah!” Ash pointed to the green pearl in his ear. “It’s all of us or none of us!” Izuku let out a watery sigh. “Seriously you guys…” he pushed off the ground. “You really don’t know when to stop, do you?” It was light hearted though and soon he was dragged away to the hot springs just like one of the boys and when he got in no one said anything. Of course a few glances were sent here and there, it was human nature, but that was all.

In the springs he met Todoroki’s eyes. It was more burn scars than cuts and rips but Todoroki had a lot too. The boy shrugged. “I guess after your story came out it’s been a bit easier to be in my own skin too,” he said. Izuku’s eyes sparkled. His friend closed his eyes, leaning against the large rocks around them. “Who knows, maybe I’ll even use my fire one day.” Izuku leaned back with him, staring up at the night sky. It was so pretty to see, even if he didn’t have his glasses on. “And maybe one day we will both feel comfortable as ourselves.”

Izuku hummed. “I didn’t take you for the cheesy type,” he joked. Todoroki shrugged. “Many don’t. Somehow, I don’t take you for the bad boy type either. I don’t think it is necessarily bad that you don’t have the fake confidence you had before all this went down. That was good too, but so is the real you.” The greenette closed his. “I can’t say I know what that is.” Todoroki shrugged. “Me neither. Maybe one day we will meet each other again. When we find out who we really are.”

Izuku opened his eyes, a small smile forming on his lips. “Maybe one day…”

…

…

…

Their moment of rest was fleeting. When morning came they were dragged out immediately with instructions of no breakfast because they would throw up if they ate. Izuku was perfectly fine with that. He only ate dinner at home and a small snack during lunch. Some others weren’t faring so well but they all understood once the ‘training’ started. It started with Bakugou throwing a ball and realizing they really haven’t extended on their quirks and pokemon moves all that much. And from there it was hell. They were forced to use their powers until they dropped. And many dropped. Dad had to stay by Izuku and Chip. They were forced to hold form and use their powers within that form for way longer than the time limit. Izuku only stopped when water filled his lungs as he lost hold on Vaporeon or the trees began to uproot themselves as Espeon. Smokey and Pepper were training their own moves as well though the small puppy pokemon was easily getting distracted every five minutes. He was allowed three spasms before he was forced to stop completely that day to protect his brain from being damaged. They didn’t let him just rest though. No, this was no fun camp. This was an intensive training camp to push and extend the limits of their moves and quirks. If they couldn’t train their powers then they would train their bodies. Push ups and sit ups until they couldn’t get up again. Dad had to stay and remind Izuku were he was every so often when he dropped and was reminded of his days in the basement (*cough cough* not that long ago) when Chip would be punished if he couldn’t get up. Other than that it was just a lot of blood, sweat, tears, and the yells and cries from the students and pokemon of Class 1-A and Class 1-B alike.

They had to make their own dinners but with their arms and legs dragging it took much longer and was much sloppier than they would have liked. Still, in their tired states any food tasted like good food. They were dragging in the showers. No one wanted to take a bath. They probably would have fallen asleep in it. While everyone was sleeping, those who failed weren’t.

“Bwhahahahahaha!” Monoma from Class 1-B pointed at Kaminari, Ashido, Kirishima, Ash, Izuku, and Sato who all failed as they entered the small room in the lodge with a few tables set up. “SIX! SIX of you failed! The oh so great Class 1-A failed!” Izuku, too tired to deal with this junk, stormed right up to the boy and * **SLAM** *ed his hands on the table Monoma was sitting at and stared him right in those periwinkle eyes. Monoma sweatdropped. “Wh- What-”

“BWAHAHAHAHAHA!” Everyone in the room jumped. Izuku grinned wider. “HA. Ha. ha.” The corners of his eyes crinkled. “Guys! Someone from Class 1-B failed!” He jabbed his finger in Monoma’s chest. “The great Monoma failed! He failed so hard he doesn’t even have a ‘buddy’! Hahahahahahaha-” Kaminari walked over and grabbed his arm. “Okaaaaaay…” Izuku’s face fell. With as much anger and spite the tired boy could put in his voice he hissed at Monoma: “ **Shut up.** ” Monoma paled, going stock still.

Kirishima whistled. Kaminari chuckled warily. “And we are moving…” he dragged Izuku away to the far table where they sat. Izuku folded his arms in his chair and kicked his feet up on the desk with a “Hmph!” Everyone else sat at a desk with their own respective buddy. Monoma would be with these students so his ‘buddy’ didn’t have to come. 

Dad walked in. He looked around the room. Everyone and their pokemon dead silent but tense and definitely not looking like they are ready to pass out. Monoma frozen in place, completely still. Izuku with his legs on a table brooding. Chip curled up on the table. Dad narrowed his eyes. “So what happened in here?” Kaminari scratched the back of his head. “Ha ha ha…” Izuku huffed. “Ha.” The blonde faltered. “Ha…” Dad nodded. “Alright, ignoring that. Moving on.”

_ Smart man, Aizawa Shouta is.  _

The extra lessons for the students that failed the exam were two hours long and chalk full of boring notes that they barely took because their arms were falling off. It wasn’t anything substantial. It was basically a repeat of what they had all learned in school. So basically this was just a straight punishment and if anyone fell asleep or began to doze off it was twenty-five push ups. Izuku had to stop himself from walking right out and going to bed. The only reason he didn’t is because it was Dad who was teaching and Dad knows that is the only reason he wasn’t walking out of that door right this very second. When they  _ were _ released you best bet your lucky dollar that he was the first one out of that door with Kaminari hot on his heels. He had to take a deep breath before opening the door to Class 1-A boy’s sleeping quarters. Sato, Kirishima, Kaminari, Ash all wavered behind him. He opened the door to the dark room and expertly found his way to his sleeping bag before basically peeling over. He was asleep before his head hit the pillow.

____________________________

Denki tip-toed through the dark room. Sero sat up. “Dude,” he whispered and pointed over to Izuku, “I heard that sigh from all the way down the hall. What happened?”

“Monoma,” Kirishima whispered as he settled onto his sleeping bag.

“Multiple spasms in a day,” Sato settled into his.

“Exhaustion,” Ketchum got in his.

Denki nodded. “All of that but mostly Monoma.” Sero nodded. “Makes sense.”

____________________________

The day after was much of the same. Izuku could feel the exhaustion building up. He couldn’t eat as much so there wasn’t as much to convert into energy. He was basically downing energy drinks by the hour until Dad found out and swiped them. “That’s not healthy,” he says. Izuku promptly ignored him and finished off the last of the one he had started before Dad got to them. “Izuku,” the greenette threw the bottle at him and stood. “Chip, Espeon.”

Dad sighed and resigned himself to watching. 

Izuku was walking to the sink with his empty plate at dinner when he passed that little kid, Kouta, was it? Mandalay’s nephew? “You aren’t like the others,” the black haired boy stated. Izuku looked down at him. “You talkin’ to me?” Kouta shrugged. Izuku rolled his eyes. “Well good. I don’t plan on being like anyone I don’t wanna be.” He walked off to the sink.

“Why are you becoming a hero if you act like that?” Kouta’s question stopped Izuku in his tracks. “Aren’t heroes supposed to be stupid people who give their lives away?” The greenette looked the boy up and down. 

\-----

_ ‘Bunch of stupid hero wannabees.’ _

\-----

“You don’t have a very good view on heroes, do you?” he asked. Kouta huffed. “What gave it away?” Izuku deposited his plate before crouching by the boy. “So? What happened? Heard your parents were killed or something.” Kouta looked down. Izuku swallowed a sigh. “So you don’t like heroes, I don’t like parents. What a pair.”

Kouta looks up. “You don’t like parents?” Izuku shrugged. “I used to not. I’m adopted. Do you know what that means?” Kouta shook his head. “It means my real parents didn’t want me and someone else did so they took me and now they are my parents. Well, in easy terms. See that man over there,” Izuku pointed at Dad who was eating with the Pussycats, “that’s my adoptive father. He’s the only reason I don’t hate parents completely.” He looked back at Kouta. “Mandalay is your aunt, right?” Kouta nodded. “Do you like her?” The boy nodded again. “Do you-” Izuku bit his tongue “-love her?” The black haired boy looked to the side. “I- I guess,” he blushed. Izuku chuckled. “But she is a hero.”

The boy scowled. “Yeah, but she didn’t-” “Leave you?” Izuku finished. “But she could still die on the battlefield too. Does that make what she did wrong? All of the lives she saved meaningless? Does knowing that make you hate her?” Kouta looked up and shook his head. “Of course not!” The greenette patted the younger’s shoulder. “Good. I’m sure she’d be happy to hear that. I can’t fix what happened to your parents but I can say that if you keep this jaded outlook on life it’s only going to hurt more. Your parents died doing what they believed to be right and right now you may be a bit too young to see it but they loved you too. Being a hero is a dangerous job, Kouta, but I hope someday you come to see all heroes aren’t bad, just like I found out that all parents aren’t bad.

Kouta looked over at Mandalay. “Do you love that man? Your new dad? Even after your old one’s didn’t want you?”

____________________________

Shouta stopped by the sink with his plate. He glanced down at Izuku. He saw the way Izuku’s right hand began to twitch at the question. Shouta kept walking but a bit slower, if only to not look like he was awkwardly standing in the middle of the room. Kouta looked back over at Izuku at the sudden silence. Shouta’s black eyes widened when Izuku reached up and ruffled Kouta’s hair.

“ **Yeah, I suppose I do.** ” 

Shouta could have cried right then and there. He quickly deposited his plate and rejoined everyone. “Your smile is creepy, Eraser,” Ragdoll commented. He looked up at her. Was he smiling? He looked over at Izuku who just stood, giving one last pat to Kouta, before leaving for his table. Well sure him. He just indirectly got the best news in his life.

____________________________

“You should talk to Mandalay sometime,” Izuku said. “Not some wannabe hero like me. Trust me, I ain’t the one to take life advice from but something tells me you’ve been avoiding this topic for a while. You know, I bet Mandalay loves you very much too, just as much as your parents did. If you asked her, I bet she’d tell you about them.”

Kouta tilted his head. “About them?”

“Your parents,” Izuku said. He stood and pat the boy’s head one last time, letting his hand linger a bit on the top. “Adults… are a lot smarter than us. Maybe you should try trusting them sometime.” He walked away, waving over his shoulder. “See you around, kid.” Izuku sat at the table between Kaminari and Hitoshi. “You look like you just had a life changing revelation,” Hitoshi joked.

Izuku looked at him. “I think I did.”

Violet eyes narrowed. “Huh?”

Izuku tilted his head. “Huh?”

Hitoshi shook his head. “Nevermind…”

Izuku looked over at Dad. 

\-----

_ ‘Do you love that man?’ _

_ \----- _

_ ‘Adults… are a lot smarter than us. Maybe you should try trusting them sometime.’ _

\-----

He never thought he would be the one to say that. That night, he was suddenly hit with the urge that he had to tell Dad. He doesn’t know why but he felt like he might not get another chance to. So as he and the other flunkies were dragged away from the scare maze that those who didn’t fail were participating in, Izuku gave Dad’s scarf a light tug.

Monoma, bless his heart, was dead silent as they re-entered the makeshift classroom. “I have to talk to Dad real quick,” Izuku informed Kaminari. “Alrighty,” the boy naturally stood as well. After all, they were told to stay together. Izuku wrung his hands together. “I mean, um, maybe… alone?” The electric boy hummed. He looked over at everyone. “I’m sure it’d be fine. I’m with everyone, you’d be with him.” Kaminari nodded and sat back down. “You are free to go, my good sir.” The greenette gave a small chuckle before leaving the room. Dad was already waiting for him a bit down the hall.

“Izuku? Is everything alright?” Dad asked. Izuku felt his cheeks heating up.  _ This feels like a confession. _ But something dark swirls in his chest. He has to say this tonight. He slowly walks up, head down. It’s unfamiliar. He doesn’t know what it means to  _ love  _ someone, whether intimately or family-like. “Izu-” he wraps his arms around the man “-ku…?” Chip rubs up against Dad’s leg. He feels Dad’s chest shake when he takes a deep breath. Arms wrap around Izuku just as tightly. “Hey, kids,” he whispers. Tears gather in both rainbow and green eyes. “Dad, I-” he grits his teeth as his arm jerks slightly. “It’s okay if you can’t,” Dad says knowingly. Izuku shakes his head. “I- it- I- You-” Izuku looks up at his father.

“I love you!” he blurts out. “Eevee!” Chip cries.

Tears fill Dad’s eyes too. He holds the back of Izuku’s head and brings them closer. “I love you too. Both of you.” And oh how those words fill Izuku with something he’s never felt before. Since he was four- no, even before that. Izuku has never felt so full, so happy in his life. He’s never felt so  _ right _ . This man, Aizawa Shouta, is his father.

Dad pats him on the head. “Hey, now, don’t fall asleep. You still have two hours of punishment like the rest of your flunkies.” Izuku and Chip chuckle. He doesn’t want to but he leans back and out of the hold. Dad smiles down at him. “Thank you, Izuku, Chip.” The both grin at him. “Th- thank you, too.” “Vee!” Together three walk back to the classroom. Izuku stops outside. “C- can you give us a second to, like, not look like we were crying?” he half-jokes, wiping his eyes. Dad ruffles his hair. “Sure but be quick. You know the buddy rule.” Izuku nods. 

He hears the few inside ask where he is, Dad giving a light excuse as he enters. Izuku kneels down and picks up Chip. They walk a bit further down in the quiet corridor to a window. Izuku always liked the night sky. Somewhere nearby his classmates were walking through a forest being scared by the Class 1-B kids. Looking up at the sky, a flash of blue catches his eye. “What was that?” He looks down at the trees outside. Another flash of blue and this time Izuku sees it clearly. “-re…” His heart pounds in his chest. “Fire…” Izuku stumbles back against the wall, paralyzed. Tears not of joy but fear fill his eyes. He opens his mouth to call Dad but before he can a singular marble rolls near him. His eyes look down just in time to see the teal orb hit his foot. “Huh?”

And in a blink of an eye, Izuku and Chip disappear.


	24. Captive Depression

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well, y'all know what sort of comes but not really!!! LOLOLOL lol... ha... ha... :(

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone?

Shouta felt all warm and squishy going into the flunkie class. It was weird. He didn’t hate it but he isn’t one to feel like this.

\-----

_ ‘I love you!’ ‘Eevee!’ _

\-----

Ah, Shouta feels like a little school girl.  _ Snap out of it! You got students to punish! _ And when he turned to the tiny class of flunkies his grin sent shivers down all of their spines. Shouta opened his textbook. “Alright, so back to vocabulary.” “Aw, maaaaaaan!” And so they started. It was about five minutes in of straight rewriting vocab words that Shouta began to get a little worried about Izuku and Chip. They should have come in by now. Shouta looked up at the overhead clock. “Continue writing,” he instructed. “I’ll be right back.” He made for the door when Mandalay’s voice rang through his head.

“ **EVERYONE! VILLAINS HAVE INVADED THE AREA! THE FOREST IS ON FIRE! ALL CAPABLE RETURN TO THE LODGE! DO NOT ENGAGE IN COMBAT WITH THE ENEMY IF YOU COME IN CONTACT WITH THEM! CONTINUE YOUR RETREAT!** ”

It was like a bucket of ice water was dumped on him.  _ No… _ “Eraserhead!” Vlad King slammed open the door. He held out his phone. It was ringing off the charts from the student’s pressing their emergency watches. Shouta took the man by the shoulders. “Watch them. I have to go get the students that are still out there!” “Wha-!” Shouta broke past the man and bolted down the hallway. Izuku and Chip weren’t there. Izuku and Chip WEREN’T THERE!  _ Calm down, calm down, calm down.  _ He glanced out a nearby window to see the forest lit in blue flames.  _ He probably went to a bathroom to have a panic attack or something because he saw the fire. It’s fine! _ Shouta popped his head in the nearest bathroom. “Izuku?!”

…

_ Nonononono! _ Shouta kept running to the front entrance, stopping by every bathroom and calling in. There was no sign of them. He let free Absol, Seviper, and Umbreon. “Villains are attacking,” he hurriedly informed them.  _ You’re a teacher Shouta, get it together.  _ “We have to get the students still in the forest.” His pokemon gave affirmatory cries.  _ He’s fine. He’s fine. He’s fine! _ They burst into the night air. The blue flames were blinding and the scorching heat was all encompassing. 

“Your worry impeded your thought,” his head spun to the new voice, a scared man with black spiked-up hair. “Sloppy move, Eraserhead.” Shouta jumped back but not before the flames came at him.

It  _ burned _ .

____________________________

_ ‘So? Where is your little green friend?’ _

\-----

Hitoshi’s heart pounded. Mandalay’s telepathic message rang loudly in his head over and over again on repeat and with it the words of the villains from the mall.  _ Izuku…  _ He grabs Todoroki’s arm. “They are after Izuku!” Todoroki nodded. “He’s at the lodge with Aizawa-sensei and Vlad King. He should be fine. Let’s just focus on getting out of this alive.”

“How heartless!”

Both boys froze. The sound of loud footsteps approached them from behind, heavy enough to shake the ground beneath their feet. Hitoshi gulped audibly. They turn around. A man, he had to be seven feet tall or at least near it, with short blonde hair, bulging arms, and a hideous scar over his left eye stormed towards them. “‘Izuku’? That the Midoriya kid we’re looking for?” Hitoshi and Todoroki took a step back, readying their pokeballs. He grit his teeth. “Who are you and what do you want with us?” he asked. The man laughed loudly. “Me? I don’t wa-”

Hitoshi snatched Todoroki by the wrist and ran. “Run while you can! I brainwashed him!” The two boys sprinted for their lives. Hitoshi let out Espurr, Purrloin too inexperienced for this yet, and Todoroki let out Flare and Snow. They each hopped on one of the Ninetales’, Hitoshi on Snow.

A loud roar that shook them to their bones echoed behind them. The ground shook. “I haven’t seen your blood yet!!!” Hitoshi paled. “Go faster!” The thundering footsteps chased them. Hitoshi whipped his head around just in time to see the man, significantly larger with giant exposed muscles, breach through the brush. “ESPURR!” The small psychic pokemon’s eyes lit up. “Purr!” The psychic hold of the pokemon barely slowed the hulking beast down. Todoroki threw out his right arm creating a wall of ice. 

* **SMASH** *

Hitoshi and Todoroki watched in horror as the man’s fist left a crater in the ground right where they were just before. From behind the villain a larger than life Ursaring rounded the corner with the same crazed look as its assumed trainer. “Show me your blood!” The man yelled. Ursaring leapt for them, claws extended. “URS!!!” It snagged Flare’s tail, the Ninetales cried out, pitching forward. Todoroki fell off, rolling in the dirt and hitting a tree. “Snow, stop!” Hitoshi commanded.

Todoroki looked up. “Keep going!” he yelled. But the Ninetales came to a halt, contemplative. The villain and Ursaring approached. Todoroki grit his teeth. “Snow, as I am your trainer I command you to take Hitoshi away!”  _ Heck no! _ Hitoshi went to jump off. “GO NOW!” Todoroki threw up a massive wall of ice just as the villains attacked. With tears pricking in his eyes, Snow turned away and bolted. Hitoshi stared behind him as the ground shook with the fight happening there. 

They breached the forest safely just in time to see a scarred man dissolve into a puddle of goop. He was late to the apparent battle between Shouta and this man but he heard the final words of the villain:

“ **Say, Mr. Hero, your students are precious to you, right?** ”

____________________________

Shoto and Flare were forced to split up. When the muscular man hit the wall of ice they used the kicked up dust as a means of escape. Now it was just Shoto with the beast of a man behind him and Flare was somewhere being chased down by a rampaging Ursaring. He was  _ terrified _ . Every step the man made left a crater in its wake. 

“You can’t run forever, ice boy!” In a flash of flesh and muscle the villain was before him. Shoto didn’t even have time to react. A massive fist was drawn back and his vision went black with a solid-

* **!BAM!** *

The bi-colored boy’s body flew into a tree, broke through it, hit the next and broke through the next before it slammed into one and slid down. Shoto’s head spun. His ribs hurt, probably broken. He couldn’t register it. He could barely register the form of the villain coming toward him. Black spots ran throughout his vision. Each heavy footstep that shook the ground sent waves of pain down his body.

\-----

_ ‘Pathetic.’ Endeavor sauntered over to the wounded Shoto. ‘After all the work I put into creating the perfect quirk. Get up, Shoto. We aren’t done yet.’ _

\-----

“Look at ya! You’re pourin’ from ya head! That’s what I like to see!” Shoto blinked lazily.  _ I need to move _ , he thought rationally.  _ Some cold soba would be nice _ , his shaken brain could not focus on one thing or the other. A large hand reached down for him, the shadow of it against the bright flames blocking out the light. “Now, let me see some mo- AH!”

Shoto let loose all of the ice he could muster, propelling himself upward as such a rapid rate that when he could no longer produce anymore the momentum carried him forward and up into the night sky. He soared. Shoto overlooked the burning forest, a shine of blue in his ever darkening vision. He blinked. The flames were closer. He blinked again. And closer. And again.

_ Ah, I’m falling. _

____________________________

Ochaco wiped the sweat from her chin with her wrist. The heat from the fire nearby was getting unbearable. That and she, Iida, Tsu, and Ojiro were all in a battle against a weird blonde girl with two buns on her head and some full body mask creep with a mega bi-polar disorder or something.

“Aw, Ochaco-choco!” Toga, the proclaimed name of the villain girl squealed, “you don’t have to be so mean! I just wanna be friends with you!”

She grit her teeth. Bleeding from her leg, she was trying to keep mobility to a minimum. Iida was tied up with the clones of the bi-polar dude, Twice she thinks Toga called him. Ojiro was not seen but he was creeping behind Twice. Tsu was out out. She was on the floor of the forest unconscious. How were four hero course students getting beaten by two villains?!

* **_FWOOSH_ ** _ * _

All heads turned to the sky to the side of them. A giant glacier of ice jutted from the forest into the sky, gleaming against the fire below it. “What is that?!” Twice shouted. At the very tip of it, flying through the air was- “Todoroki!” she cried. 

At that moment, Ojiro took advantage of the distraction. He leapt out from behind a tree at Twice, spinning around and slamming his tail into the man’s head. The clones around Iida dissolved into goop when the man fell unconscious. “Iida, go get Todoroki!” Ojiro yelled. “On it!” The blue-haired boy bolted off into the forest. 

Toga growled. “You hurt my friend! That wasn’t very friendly of you!” With blades flashing, she rushed forward at Ochaco. The brunette jumped back. She landed on her injured leg, gasping in pain. Ochaco fell to the ground. Toga ducked beneath Ojiro’s Meinfoo’s swing. The blade rose high above the brunette’s head. Instinctively, Ochaco put her hands up and out as if to use her quirk.

* **stab** *

She screamed, reeling back as Toga’s knife plunged through and out the other side of her right hand. Toga’s body weight and momentum pushed her to the ground. Iida’s Bisharp ran for her. Floette, batting Toga’s Ditto transformed into her, tore away from the battle to come to her trainer’s aid. A Moon Blast orb hit Floette in the back from the opposing pokemon. “FloooooETTE!”

In a flash of light, the small flower pokemon began to evolve. It grew massively in size, flowers growing like a fur collar around its neck. The now much larger Florges tackled Toga full force. The blade ripped from Ochaco’s hand, blood spewing force like a spring. Toga was pushed right in the way of Bisharp’s Metal Claw that tore through the blonde’s side. Ochaco’s own cry of pain was mimicked through Toga’s throat. She fell to the ground, holding her side that was gushing out blood. Twice’s Ninjask dove over from it’s trainer’s fallen form. It kicked up a sand attack with its wings. Ochaco, Florges, Ojiro, Mienfoo, and Bisharp all shielded their eyes. When the sand settled back on the ground, none of the villains were to be seen.

Ochaco let out a watery breath. “Uraraka,” Ojiro ran to her. She shook her head, wiping her eyes. “D- don’t. Ch- check on T- Tsu and Frogadier.”

Florges helped her up as her leg was still wounded. Ochaco let out a chuckle. “L- look at you. You’re big enough to support me now,” she tried to joke. Most pokemon don’t reach their final evolution until near the end of the student’s third year. However, due to some less than savory circumstances the pokemon of this class seem to have a bit more experience than others.

Ojiro walked up with Tsu in his arms. Bisharp, being cautious of his sharp edges, and Mienfoo, carried Frogadier. “We need to get back to camp.”

Ochaco nodded. She looked up at the giant glacier of ice, slowly melting away by the fire.  _ I hope Iida made it in time. _

____________________________

Katsuki, French drama queen, Octopus, and Bird Head tensed up, preparing for another attack from the toothy freak.

It stopped, turned around, and walked away through the forest.

“Hey! Get back here you creep!” Katsuki ran forward. Octopus grabbed his arm. “We weren’t permitted to fight, Bakugou.” Katsuki stopped, glaring at the darkness where the villain disappeared. Bird Head looked around.

“Something doesn’t feel right. Why-”

____________________________

Momo and Awase coward behind a tree as the creature stormed by, covering their mouths. She popped off a tracking device. Momo placed it in her classmates hand and nodded to the beast. Awase shook his head rapidly. She nodded rapidly. With a disheartened look, the boy silently made his way up to the slow-moving figure and welded it to his skin. The creature didn’t even stop, it just kept moving.

“Shouldn’t he have felt that?” Momo asked when it was far enough away. Awase looked after it. “Yeah…” The Class 1-B students felt a sense of foreboding wash over them. Momo waved over her Doublade. “Stay close, this isn’t right.” 

Awase nodded. “Yeah. Why are they-”

____________________________

Shino (Mandalay) held her arms out as the lizard man, Spinner, and the magnetic man, Magne, suddenly stopped their advance. Spinner hissed. “Time to go,” he half-whispered to his battle partner.  _ Time to go? _ They simply turned away and walked away. Tiger ran forward. “Wait!”

“Tiger,” Shino stopped her teammate, “we need to focus on the wounded students first.” Tiger stopped. Around them lay Tsuburaba and Fukidashi from Class 1-B, them and Ragdoll lay unconscious around them. Tiger knelt by the boys. “I don’t like this.” 

Shino grit her teeth. “I don’t either. Why would they-”

____________________________

“Why-”

“Why-”

“Why-”

____________________________

“ **Why are the villains suddenly retreating?** ”

____________________________

Kouta peered out from behind the front door to his Aunt’s lodge. He had wanted to speak with her tonight after considering what that emo teen said so he didn’t go to his secret hideout tonight and boy is he glad he didn’t! “Corp,” Corphish watched from behind him as the heroes and hero students came stumbling out of the forest.

That man that emo kid said he loved came out of the forest carrying the girl with long earlobes. He had gone to aid his students. Kouta waited tensely until finally his Aunt came out of the forest. “Auntie!” he ran out. He hadn’t lost her too! He was so scared! 

“Kouta,” she breathed out.” Kouta wrapped his arms around her leg. “A- ah…” he looked up asn saw her holding Ragdoll in her arms. Auntie looked so sad… so tired… Tiger came out with two students in his big arms. Auntie smiled down at him. “Kouta, why don’t you go wait inside, okay? I’ll be in soon.” 

Stubborn as rebellious as he may be, Kouta knew this was not the time to refute so he obliged but he watched from behind a wall as the students and pokemon and teachers gathered one by one in the lunch hall, most battered, bloodied, and bruised. He looked around but one head he did not see.

_ Where’s the emo kid? _

____________________________

“What do you mean ‘he disappeared’?” Hitoshi asked. He sat with the students who failed the exams. The only one who wasn’t there was Izuku. Kaminari’s head hung low. Kirishima glared at the floor, cursing himself out for not doing anything, Sato tried to comfort him. Mina was off with her other friends somewhere. Ash was the only one willing to answer. “Izuku went out to talk to Aizawa-sensei. Sensei said he was taking a breather, like he does sometimes cause,” Ash waved his hand, “you know, the whole ordeal with him. He just- Izuku and Chip didn’t come back.”

Hitoshi’s heart plummeted. He had a pretty solid idea as to why.

He looked around at the gathering. There were so many wounded. The worst of them had to be Todoroki who chrome back via Iida, those who got knocked out by some weird gas that had apparently been going around, and a couple of Class 1-B kids but most of them were sporting battle wounds. It was like a scene of the aftermath from a war movie.

“Where is Sho- Aizawa-sensei now?” he asked. “Your teacher?” a girl, Yaoyorozu Momo from Class 1-B asked. He nodded. She looked at the open front door. “Apparently one of the students haven’t come back yet. He is out there looking for them.”

Hitoshi pursed his lips. His heart pounded painfully in his chest.  _ Please… please come back, Izuku! _

____________________________

He can’t find him…

He can’t find him!

Shouta can’t find Izuku! He searched everywhere until he was out of breath and couldn’t run anymore. “He’s still out there!” Shouta pleaded with Tiger who came into the forest to find him. “Eraserhead, please calm down. We are heroes. There are forty-” thirty-nine “traumatized students in there. We have to be professional.”

Shouta  _ knows _ this. He  _ knows _ . But his sons are still out there! Shouta forces himself to calm down.  _ Think rationally, calmly, Shouta. _ The police and backup arrived as well as the ambulances and medical evacuation helicopters for those needing immediate attention such as Todoroki. He watched as car by car load his students were taken away. He heard it as they all went in passing:

“ _ Where’s Izuku? _ ”

“ _ Did he not come back? _ ”

“ _ Wasn’t he with the kid’s who failed? _ ”

Shouta stared out at the burning forest being put out by firefighters and heroes. The sound of footsteps stopped beside him. “We checked the entire lodge,” Mandalay stated. “Your student isn’t here, Eraserhead.” His heart doesn’t even drop. He knew it rationally when Izuku didn’t first show up back in the classroom. When Mandalay’s telepathic message went out. When the students began crawling out of the forest and he didn’t. Umbreon leaned against him. Shouta looked to the sky.

“A- a few more minutes,” he stated. Mandalay shook her head sadly. “We can’t , Eraser. Your other students need you. We have to go.” The raven-haired man bit back tears. He sighed if only to cover up the cry of pain. “Alright… Let’s go.”

____________________________

It was like he was frozen in time. Izuku couldn’t feel anything, not even Chop in his arms. He couldn’t think, mind numb. It was dark. Not necessarily cold or warm. Just dark. The air, if it was even that, was still.

And then it wasn’t.

At one moment he was in the lodge and in the next he was in a whole new place. In a flash of light, all of his senses were attacked. New sounds, new smells, new surroundings. His heart pounded. Izuku and Chip looked around wildly.  _ Where are we? _ Metal walls, like some sort of military bunker, a large sum of medical equipment, the loud constant beeping and whir of machines, all of them attached to a single man in a chair in the middle. The top of his face was completely scared. He didn’t even have eyes! He donned a formal suit. Izuku felt his heart rate speed up. The aura this man gave off was just as oppressing if not more than Mr. Midoriya’s. He knew this man was bad news.

A wicked smile split the man’s face. “Welcome back,  **X13** .”

And Chip  _ screeched _ .

____________________________

After the attack, UA Trainer’s Academy and the whole of Kalos was pretty shaken. This was the second time a large scale attack had been put on UA where the villains infiltrated in the school year. This hasn’t happened in many years, not even once, so the public began to question whether or not UA could truly protect its students.

Out of the wounded, six were still unconscious.

Todoroki Shoto had a mess made of his ribs but by some miracle his spine, while cracked, wasn’t broken even if it was pretty close to being so. He had a major concussion and had yet to wake up. Jiro Kyoka and Sero Hanta were still out from a poisonous gas that had spread through a portion of the forest. Kosei Tsuburaba and Manga Fukidashi both sported wounds ranging from major concussions, broken bones, and quirk exhaustion. Ryuko Tsuchikawa, Professional Heroine: Pixie-Bob, suffered massive head trauma and is not expected to wake up anytime soon. Out of the pokemon wounded, the Kanto Ninetales Flare, pokemon of Shoto Todoroki, had multiple claw marks ranging from small to deep and almost bled out before it was found and it is currently being treated. Asui Tsuyu’s Frogadier had broken a leg and suffered a minor concussion. Many of the Wild, Wild Pussycats’ pokemon were wounded as well.

For the less life-endangering wounds, Uraraka Ochaco’s left leg had a minor wound that was quickly healed at the hospital but the wound in her right hand was substantial and she is expected to have limited movement in that hand afterwards. Asui Tsuyu had two cracked ribs and a minor concussion. Iida Tenya suffered a few cuts here and there but most of it was quirk exhaustion in his rush to catch the falling Todoroki Shoto, an act that saved the more wounded boy’s life. The rest of the students experienced some form of bruise or cut. Most experienced heat exhaustion and first-degree burns from just being in the vicinity of such powerful flames for an extended amount of time. Those who were also affected by the gas had begun to wake up aside from the aforementioned two. 

But none of that amounted to the mental and emotional trauma they all experienced, especially those of Class 1-A when they received the news that their classmate, Izuku, was missing and even more so when they recalled the fact that the villains were after his head.

The training camp was cut short and the students were given a few days off to recuperate and settle their shaken nerves.

____________________________

“I can’t come?” Shouta questioned. 

Principal Nedzu shook his head. “I am afraid not. As Class 1-A’s homeroom teacher and the guardian in charge of them you must be present at the press conference while the raid is happening. We need to reestablish the public’s trust in UA.” Shouta bit his tongue. There were a lot of things going through his mind at the moment and he was already struggling to stay calm.

They had received news that a couple of students from Class 1-B had placed a tracker on what they deemed another ‘Nomu’ while it was walking away. That and some outside information had pinpointed a suspected place for the League of Villain’s hideout to be. A press conference was being set up to both reassure Kalos that UA was not faltering and to act as a cover up on both of the attacks on those two locations that would be happening at the same time as the press conference. It would seem that Shouta’s presence would not be at either and instead sucking up to the press when his son was out there probably in the clutches of dangerous villains, maybe in Midoriya Hisashi’s hold again as they still have yet to confirm his whereabouts.

Shouta gave a small bow. “I understand. Thank you.” And without another word or waiting to be dismissed, the man left the office with Umbreon at his side.

He was tired. Shotua had barely slept a wink in the three days since returning from the camp. He was busy on patrols, on paperwork, on diving into the dark web for any information on the league to find his son. He was busy with phone calls to parents and going over the files they had on the League. He was  _ busy _ looking for  _ his son _ . He was tired… But that didn’t give him the excuse to walk into that classroom full of expectant and hopeful and traumatized children and blow it on them.

Somewhere in the back of his mind he knew that repressing these emotions and this anger wasn’t healthy but he ignored it. He had a job to do.

Shouta took a deep breath and opened the classroom door to Class 1-A. There was barely a whisper in the room and yet all of the students aside from the one missing and the three still unconscious were present. Shouta walked up to the front of the class, turned to them, and bowed deeply. “I am truly sorry for the events that had taken place at the training camp,” he started. “It was meant to be a secure location.”

“Sensei…” Uraraka whispered. “Please stand up…” He did. “You didn’t- It’s not your fault… None of us could have known.”

He sighed. “Nevertheless, it was the school’s and my mistake. It is our job to raise and protect you.” He tapped his wrist. “Those watches on your wrist are to become a permanent part of your daily wear, even at home. For one reason or another, this class is being targeted by the villains. No matter what you are doing, keep them on. Today will be a light day so lets just go over everything we learned at camp. He turned to the chalk board behind him and picked up a piece of chalk.

“Sensei, what about Izu-” Ketchum’s leg was kicked by Ashido. Shouta took a shaky breath. He knew the students heard it. He couldn’t bring himself to turn to them, instead continuing to face the board and continue to write. “The whereabouts of your classmate are still to be yet ascertained. We will notify you the moment we find him.” And no one asked anymore questions and if they had any about the lesson they didn’t ask them because Shouta would not turn away from the board. He couldn’t let his students see the tears pricking at his eyes and they knew that despite his best efforts their teacher was struggling to keep it together.

So they kept quiet and the class continued.

The next evening was the press conference. He dressed in a suit and tie and had his face shaved and his hair pulled back.  _ Izuku and Chip would have been proud.  _ Shouta shook his head and left the bathroom. He walked up to Izuku’s room door and lifted his fist. * **knock knock knock** * “Smokey, Pepper, it’s me.” The two didn’t leave Izuku’s room almost ever unless they had to. Guilt dwelled as deeply in them as it did in Shouta, Umbreon, Absol, and Seviper and every other hero that was supposed to be watching over the students. “We are going to the press conference now.” No response. “There is food in the kitchen for you.”

And with that, he left. The sadness that had settled over the Aizawa residence seemed to never seep out. It just got thicker as time went on.

Shouta pulled up to the press conference. Even though it was inside, reporters filled the parking lot, not all of them able to get in. Shouta got out with Umbreon at his side. Bodyguards surrounded them as they walked to protect them from the reporters. Flashing cameras and yelling voices surrounded him. Shouta hates the media. Still, this is necessary. Not just for the situation but for any hero at some point in time in their career. Shouta straightened his back and walked through.

“Can you give UA’s statement about the recent villain attack?”

“A student went missing. What does UA plan to do about this?”

“Is UA reliable to send our children to? Is it reliable to produce heroes that are able to defend?”

Shouta grit his teeth and walked through, the Bodyguards pushing people out of the way. He met Vlad King and Principal Nedzu at the interview table. They all met eyes.  _ Right. This is also necessary for one other key reason. _ Shouta turned to the crowd of reports and they all bowed.  _ We need to be a sufficient distraction because at this very moment a raid is taking place. _

____________________________

All Might stormed up to the bar with Tyranitar at his side and a hoard of heroes behind him. He raised his massive fist and oh so lightly knocked on the door. “Pizza delivery!”

…

Like that would work. Doesn’t matter. He drew his fist back and with a loud “ **SMASH!** ” burst it and the whole wall down. The heroes stormed in aware that through the falling dut and rumble that hindered their vision…

There was no one there.

All Might turned around to the sound of cackling in the back of his head.  _ All For One… _ “It was a set up! To the other location!”

____________________________

_ It’s dark _ . Izuku and Chip lay curled up in the cage together. It’s a small one, barely big enough to hold his body when in this curled position. He doesn’t know how long it’s been. When that man, All For One he said, greeted them, Izuku immediately pressed his watch but they were moved to a different location and it was taken away from him. He couldn’t fight back, either. There were so many villains around. And now they lie awake and wait in this cold, dark cell. It reminds him too much of the basement. He couldn’t properly have a spasm in it. When he first came two after they knocked him and Chip out he did but his body was stuck in this curled state and it prohibited much movement.

Tears prick at Izuku’s eyes.  _ Dad… Where am I? Where are you? I’m scared.  _ It wasn’t okay. Dad wasn’t here. Dad is okay. Is Dad okay? What happened? How did he get here? Izuku closed his eyes.

_ Dad… _

____________________________

The showdown between All Might and the villain named All For One shook the region to its very core. In between Santalune City and Lumiose City, with some collateral damage on the edge of Lumiose City, rested a giant crater from their battle. The people cried out for their number one hero. It almost seemed like he would lose. It was purely a battle of strength. Heroes were wounded, civilians were wounded, and a life was lost.

Tyranitar, All Might’s bond pokemon and partner for many years, sadly perished. All Might himself almost did but in the end he stood strong and defended Kalos to the end. When the dust cleared, All Might was shown on camera by a nearby news helicopter as not the giant, buff, super strength man they all knew but instead as this deflated skeleton of a man. All Might might have won the war but the battle was lost. Though the people were stunned by his wimpy form, they cheered louder than ever. 

Kalos lost its number one hero that day and their main objective to rescue the missing UA student was all for naught. Not a single soul saw Izuku that day.

____________________________

Nemuri closed Shouta’s bedroom door quietly. She left the hallway and met Hizashi in the living room. “He’s out,” she whispered. Nemuri had to use her quirk on Shouta to get him to lie down.

\-----

_ ‘It failed?!’ _

_ ‘Shouta, you need to calm down-’ _

_ ‘Calm down?! I thought this was to rescue him!’ _

_ ‘It was but Izuku wasn’t there. I’m sorry, Shouta.’ _

\-----

It was a sad day for the hero society indeed.

____________________________

Izuku’s eyes fluttered open to the sound of footsteps. He peered out of the cage through the bars. The jingle of keys hit his ears. The brown eyes of a man entered his view. “Test Subjects X13 and Midoriya Izuku,” his voice was cold, “it’s time to start.” Izuku’s heart pounded at that name. The man unlocked his cage and almost immediately he and Chip jumped out.  _ Get out… Get out! _ It was a doctor or scientist of some sort with that lab coat. Izuku tackled him, lighting up in evolution energy.  _ Get out! Get out! Get out! _

* **BAM** *

A gunshot went off.

* **BAM** *

Another.

Two sedative shots were fired, one into Izuku’s shoulder and the other into Chip’s side. His vision blurred and Izuku and Chip passed out. When he woke up again it seemed to be a reoccuring theme for him to black out and be in a new place. This one was something similar to a lab. There were tools of all sorts, vials of different liquids, large containers the size of a human, and a big, white operation table in the middle. Two of them. One one la Izuku and on the other Chip.

“Wha…” his head spun with the leftovers of the sedative. Chip struggled against the bindings keeping him down. Foam formed around the Eevee’s mouth. Izuku’s eyes widened. “Chip!” He tried to get up but leather bindings around his abdomen, ankles, wrists, and neck kept him down, digging into his skin and flesh. “Let him go!” Izuku yelled at the supposed scientists in the room. They ignored him. Instead the one from before came over with a syringe of something. “There will only be one injection process as we need to speed things up with the recent events,” Izuku heard him say. “I hope your body reacts well to the multiple doses or All For One will have my head.” Izuku struggled, he really did. “Get away! What is that?!” He couldn’t evolve. It wasn’t working. The needle plunged into his skin and Izuku soon felt a cold liquid filter through his veins.

“IT BURNS!” Izuku screamed. He writhed as it flowed throughout his body. His eyes dilated, moving to and fro so fast he couldn’t really make anything out. It was like someone had poured liquid fire into his bloodstream. His throat clogged, much like when he couldn’t control his Vaporeon form, with foam. Izuku choked on it, the foam bubbling at his lips. His body convulsed against his will against the leather bindings.

_ Itburnsitburnsitburnsitburnsitburns! _

The last coherent thought he had before he passed out for the umpteenth time was:  _ Dad…  _

Izuku couldn’t decide which was worse, the cage or the lab. On one hand, the lab always brought blinding pain. On the other hand, the cage brought back Izuku’s darkest memories of the basement and with it his favorite word. He was tracing the word ‘OKAY’ on the wall of the tiny cage numbly when he heard the door down the hall open. He doesn’t know how long he has been here. Only that he doesn’t like it but he didn’t like the basement either. _ It’s okay _ , he decides.  _ It’ll be okay. Everything is okay.  _ Just when he had almost broken out of that habit it came up again.  _ It’s okay. We’ll be okay. It’s okay. _ Chip watched lazily at Izuku’s finger as it moved up and down with the word. The scientist came for them again. Izuku doesn’t know what they are doing to him and Chip. All he knows is that it hurts worse every time and by the time he is in the cage it is just a more dull version of the pain that he sits in. He doesn’t even try to fight it anymore as he and Chip are dragged from the cage. Their evolutions aren’t working. The last time he tried to fight he was shot with a sedative again. If he got past it then the scientists are all equipped with guns, quirks, and pokemon. He’s stuck in this endless cycle of pain.

_ It’s okay _ .

These tests they have been doing are called “Transfer Cells Test.” Izuku doesn’t understand it. His mind is numb. They take something out of Chip and put it in him along with more of that burning liquid. This time it is something different though. He is put under the knife. Izuku writhes and tries to get away but it never works.  _ It hurts!  _ Oh how it hurts. They pull back his ribs, almost but not breaking them, and put a weird stone in his body all the while Izuku is trying to hold onto his consciousness. Something similar is happening to Chip. They can’t understand it. It’s only pain. Those human sized tubes are meant for something after all. He is stuffed in one with a mask over his mouth and nose as it fills with a fluorescent green thick liquid. Chip is in the one next to him. The liquid makes his body tingle. It’s cold and slimy. He hates it.

  
Izuku hates a lot of things, there are a few things he doesn’t.

_ Dad, _ he cries out in his mind,  _ where are you? _ Through the liquid that blurs his vision, Izuku looks up as his body floats in it. 

_ It’s okay… _

He is in that tube for a long, long time. Or maybe he is just bored and in pain and it feels like forever. Every time he wakes up his body feels different. His teeth hurt like a puppy’s does when they are teething. His muscles feel like they are always contracting and loosening. His fingers hurt a lot and his hands feel it numbly. A dull pain runs throughout his body that he knows is probably a lot worse but he is on some sort of numbing pain medicine or something. With nothing to do in it he repeats that word in his head over and over again because maybe if he says it enough it will be true.

It’s  _ okay _ that he is in pain. He’s used to it. It’s  _ okay _ that he doesn’t know where he is. It’s  _ okay _ that they are doing this to him. It’s been done before.  _ It’s okay. It’s okay. It’s okay.  _ Pain is  _ okay _ . He’s used to it.

He’s used to it but that doesn’t mean he has to like it.  _ It’s okay. _ It’s not like he ever liked what Mr. Midoriya did to him before.  _ It’s okay... _

____________________________

It’s been two weeks since the training camp. The month of December is upon them. It’s cold but not as cold as Shouta’s heart. He feels numb. There has been no sign of Izuku anywhere. Mandalay and Ragdoll along with other heroes with searching type quirks have been on the prowl all over Kalos but nothing has turned up.

Shouta looks up from his computer where he was looking into the dark web late at night. He looks out the window. “It will be Christmas soon,” he muses. Smokey looks up from his position at Shouta’s feet and out of the window. Recently, the Houndoom and Poochyena have been coming out more. Poochyena never leaves Shouta’s side when he is home. Tears fill Shouta’s eyes.  _ I wanted to celebrate it with them… _

It is so hard to go to school and teach when every time he looks over at Izuku’s desk it is empty. Shouta hates it. He hates it! 

“You are going on a forced leave,” Principal Nedzu states. Shouta blanches. “What?!” The pokemon hybrid nods. “Do not take this the wrong way, Aizawa, but you aren’t holding up well. You are starting to act like you usually do in October.”  _ October…  _ He hadn’t thought about Shirakumo’s death recently so wrapped up in trying to get Izuku out of his house. “You need a break before you break.”

“I can keep teaching,” Shouta pleads. Nedzu shakes his head. “It has been brought to my attention by the staff and even some of your worried students of your recent behavior. They are worried about you.”

“But-”

“If you refute this I will take you off of the search case,” Nedzu states. Shouta’s eyes widened.  _ He can’t! I have to find him! I have too! _ Principal Nedzu sighs. “It will only be until we find and recover Izuku but until then we need you to rest. You have to be in tip top shape when we find him. You should know by now the state of Izuku’s and Chip’s mind. I doubt it will be any better after this ordeal. They will need you there. If you collapse you will not be able to come to the rescue.” Shouta hung his head, fists shaking at his side. “I understand…”

He leaves the principal’s office feeling like a student who just got scolded. Shouta trudged through the halls of UA. His heart felt heavy. No one was in the staff room when he went to retrieve a few of his belongings for doing a bit of work at home. Shouta passed his classroom door on the way out. He peered in. Hitoshi was the only one in there still even after school hours. Shouta opened it. “Hitoshi, what are you still doing here?”

The purple-haired boy looked over. He had eyebags the same size as Shouta’s.

“I’m just… thinking,” Hitoshi replied. Shouta hummed, walking in. “What does Serena think?” The purple-haired boy shrugged. “She’s really worried of course but she wasn’t there.” Hitoshi looked down. “Sh- she wasn’t…” Shouta put a hand on the younger’s shoulder. All of the trainer’s course students have been going through a bit of counseling with Hound Dog. They were all more than a bit shaken up understandably. This isn’t something children should have to go through.

Shouta left a lesson plan on the desk in his classroom for whoever would be taking over for him, presumably Hizashi or Nemuri, and left.

Shouta could feel the weight of the sadness walking into his house and Izuku and Chip not being there left. He hated it. He hated all of it! The man releases his pokemon and heads to his room. Shouta dropped his bags on the floor and flopped on his bed. The tired raven-haired man stared at the closet in his room, slightly cracked open. He could just back out the colorful box in there. Shouta grunted as he pushed himself up and walked over to it. He opened the closet. On the floor was a red box with a green lid that had a green bow on top. A Christmas present for Izuku and Chip. 

\-----

_ ‘I love you!’ ‘Eevee!’ _

\-----

Anger spiked in Shouta’s heart. He leaned down and picked it up. “rrrrrrrAH!” In rage Shouta whipped his arm and chucked it at the wall. The corner of it hit the wall. The top popped off and papers went flying all over his bedroom. Shouta ran up to the box and kicked it with all of his might. Tears flew along with the papers as he kicked at all of them in piles on the ground. Shouta cried and he screamed and he yelled as he rampaged through his room until his legs gave out and Shouta fell to the floor on his side in a ball of hiccups.

“I * **sniff** * w- was going * **sniff** * to ad- dopt them…”

____________________________

* **knock knock knock** *

Kimika (Shouta’s mom) knocked on her son’s front door. No one answered. She tried again. “Shouta, it’s Mom,” she called. A few seconds later, the lock clicked and the door opened only to reveal Seviper slithering off of the door knob. “Seviper? Where is Shouta?” The snake-like pokemon slithered off into the house. “Viper,” it hissed. Kimika put down her bags inside the house and closed the door, making sure to lock it. She followed Seviper into the house.

It was a mess. Shouta seemed to have fallen back onto those jelly pouches from before. There was a bit of trash here and there, a bunch of empty and half-drank jelly pouches, and a half empty box of cigarettes on the living room coffee table. It would seem he had fallen back into smoking too. Kimika frowned. It’s hit him really hard. “Seviper,” she turned back to the pokemon who disappeared down the hall. Kimika waved to Smokey and Izuku’s new pokemon,  _ I think Shouta said her name was Pepper _ . They were curled up in the corner of the living room. The black-haired woman was led to Shouta’s bedroom. Seviper opened the door and they went in.

Shouta was found on the floor on his side, hair messy though a bit shortened from the fire of the villain from the attack almost hitting him with it. His chest rose and fell, asleep. All around him were papers and a box, warped by a cruel beating. Kimika knelt down by her son. She pushed the hair from his face to reveal closed eyes leaking tears.

_ As much as you thought Izuku needed you _ , Kimika struggled to scoop up her son and deposit him on his bed,  _ I think you needed Izuku just as much. _

She went around collecting all of the papers and the box. It took time to make it out because of how damaged it was but the colors made it clear that this was supposed to be a Christmas present. Kimika went to the kitchen table and began putting the papers in order by the tiny numbers in the bottom right corner. By the time she got to the first page, Kimika had a pretty good idea what they were. She put on the final one and read the top:  **Adoption Form** . The woman hung her head. Tears silently fell from her eyes.

_ Please, whoever is up there, bring my grandsons back. _

____________________________

More dry rice and stale bread. Yay…

Izuku and Chip stared blankly at the meal. At least it was better than in the basement wherever he was here. At least he was fed.

They haven’t come for them in a while. Izuku tried to escape. It was his fault. He knows by now you can never escape. Now he has stitches in his left side. It’s like the basement all over again but almost worst somehow. He was out. He was starting to believe that he would never go back. Rationally he knew this wasn’t the basement but his mind lost all rationality a long, long time ago. Say maybe six, seven years old?

_ I want Dad… _ That’s his only coherent thought between consciousness and unconsciousness. The ‘okay’ mantra can’t really be considered coherent.

\-----

_ ‘Come to me and I will make it okay.’ _

\-----

Tears prick at his eyes.  _ I want Dad… _

They come for him again. “Going under for preliminary full cellular change,” one scientist says to another who writes it down. Izuku doesn’t want to go in the tube again. He doesn’t want to be cut open again. He doesn’t want any of this. The greenette slums to the ground. “Dang it, we don’t have time for this!” He is kicked in the stomach. “Get up before I put a bullet in your head.” The teen whimpers. It hurts. Everything hurts. Chip cries out for him in the hold of another scientist. Izuku glances up at his poor pokemon. None of this would have happened to Chip if only Izuku had never bonded with him.  _ I’m sorry… I’m so, so sorry. _ He pushes himself to his feet and allows the scientist to take him away.

“Estimated time under: One week,” Izuku hears the man say. He hits the bottom of the tube with a dull * **thud** *. That weird gas that initially knocks him out every time he is in here begins to filter in. Something is added this time though. To his chest, encasing the bond mark between him and Chip, they secure a small tube with a needle in the middle that pierces through his flesh. It leads out of the tube that is slowly filling with liquid and into Chip’s tube where a similar one is stuck in Chip. 

Izuku feels his conscious waning. He barely makes out the next sentence from the head scientists mouth. “I think it’s going to work. Imagine having a human-pokemon hybrid that can evolve on command. All For One is going to love us.” Izuku closed his eyes.

____________________________

_ ‘I want Dad…’ _

Shino (Mandalay) came to a full halt. She and Ragdoll were scouring the land in the Santalune Forest pressing their quirks to the max. She was reaching out her telepathy to any living thing in the vicinity. So many thoughts were just from the wild pokemon. Storing fruits for the snow coming and the like. She faltered when the actual human voice came through her telepathic waves.

“Pixie!” she yelled. The cyan-haired girl came bounding over. “What is it?” Shino pointed around here. “Use your quirk around here. I heard something.” Ragdoll nodded. She closed her eyes and sent out her own signals. Search allowed her to take in the status of every living thing up to a hundred living things within her maximum range. She furrowed her eyebrows. “I don’t know, Mandalay.”

Shino looked around. “I’m sure I-” 

_ ‘It hurts. I don’t like this. I’m scared. I want Dad.’ _

“Down!” she all but yelled. “It’s somewhere beneath us!” Ragdoll knelt down, putting her cat paw gloves to the ground. She took a deep breath and began the Search. Glameow and Meowth came over to see what the fuss was about. “Glameow?” Shino shook her head, pressing a finger to her lips. Ragdoll’s head shot up.

“Call UA!” she cried. Shino flinched back at the shriek in her friend’s voice. Ragdoll’s eyes were wide in fear. “We found them and it’s  _ not _ good.”

____________________________

It had been nearing the one month mark since Izuku and Chip went missing during the training camp attack. Hope was waning. Aizawa Shouta had hardly left his house after the mandatory leave from teaching was set in place. He was also taken off of hero patrols for the time being. The students of Class 1-A had begun to mourn their lost classmate, at that point most of them thought he had died. Kaminari Denki was put under a depression and suicide watch, the guilt of letting his ‘buddy’ that he was supposed to be with at all times go alone seeping deep into his bones. Shinsou Hitoshi had also been put under suicide and depression watch for the loss of his best friend. The collective class had brought their second green pearl earrings from home as they came in a set though they only wore one. They used the pin parts to line the top of Izuku’s desk with them however news was going around that they may start a UA boarding school system in which all of the students would move to dorms on campus. If that happened, they decided to put the earrings on the door they would designate to Izuku and Chip even if they never came back and at this point the odds of that seemed pretty bleak.

Present Mic opened the door to Class 1-A and strolled in. He carried a more serious aura than the chipper one he attempted to keep p most times for the sake of the students. He turned to the quiet class. The first sentence out of his mouth was:

“How would you guys like to pay back the villains?”

This effectively caught the attention of every student in the class. “Yesterday evening in the Santalune Forest Professional Heroes Mandalay and Ragdoll pinpointed the location of your classmate.” A collective gasp echoed around the room. “Currently, we are trying to get Izuku to respond to Mandalay’s telepathic messages with little to no luck. All we know is that he is alive and that he and Chip are not well. As of now, we cannot go and retrieve them as they are somewhere underground. We are trying to draw them out. In the meantime we are setting up an attack. There may not be much fighting or protecting as it is in a forest and that is the only reason we are asking you to come. You do not have to if you don’t want to. This would be your first real raid as heroes however I have a feeling that a good chunk of you would like to take part in this.”

Shinsou Hitoshi stood, rage sparking in those violet eyes. “Who the hell do you think you are talking to? Of course we are coming.” More and more of the students of Class 1-A stood all with the same determination in their eyes. They were going to save their classmate.

Professional Hero Mandalay went to meet up with Principal Nedzu. “I can’t get him to respond,” she states solemnly. The pokemon principal taps his chin thoughtfully. “I think I know someone who can get him to respond but if I am correct, your quirk doesn’t allow you to let two people hear each other’s thoughts, correct? It is only you and that person?” Mandalay nodded. Principal Nedzu turned to his computer. “I will contact a hero with that specific quirk set. Please continue to try.” Ans so Mandalay and Ragdoll continued to sit in the middle of the Santalune Forest to keep tabs on Izuku and Chip. Principal Nedzu called in another couple of heroes.

“Present Mic, Midnight, I need you two to go to Eraserhead’s house and inform him of the situation,” Principal Nedzu said. “We need him to talk to his son.”

____________________________

Hizashi walked up to Shouta’s house. He hadn’t entered this but once in the past month. He knows Kimika has been here for the past couple of weeks but he seriously has no idea how his friend is doing. Beside him stood Nemuri in the same position. They met eyes and nodded. Hizashi knocked on the door. A few moments later, the old Aizawa answered.

“Hizashi, Nemuri!” she greeted. “To what do we owe the visit?” Hizashi cleared his throat. “We need to speak to Shouta. It’s urgent.” Kimika’s face fell. She moved out of the doorway. “Please come in.”

The sound of the television hit his ears. Hizashi found the house in a surprisingly good state. He supposes that Kimika had been taking care of it more than her son was. A clean house doesn’t mean a happy atmosphere though. It was so heavy. They entered the living room. “-nd see here, this is called a sweetheart neckline.” Hizashi and Nemuri looked over to the television. It was playing Izuku’s favorite show: Bridal Dresses. They looked over to the couch. Shouta sat in the middle with his knees pulled to his chest and chin resting on top watching it. In his arms was his navy blue bathrobe. He wasn’t wearing it, just holding it like he would when Izuku would wear it. By his feet rested Smokey. By his side was Pepper resting on Absol’s back. Seviper was around Shouta’s neck loosely. Umbreon was laying on the back of the couch, his head resting on top of Shouta’s. They looked simply  _ miserable. _

“I made them take a break from the computer,” Kimika whispered as she walked past with the laundry basket. “They won’t stop looking through the files and searching online for any clues of where they could be.” Nemuri nods. “Thank you.” Kimika disappears down the hallway to the laundry room.

Hizashi walks up to the couch. “Hey, guys!” he chirps. … Hizashi waves his hand in front of Shouta’s face. Those black eyes didn’t even blink. Hizashi looked over at Nemuri. ‘ _ Sleeping? _ ’ he mouthed. She shrugged. Nemuri walked over and turned off the television. Shouta took a shaky breath. Tears instantly filled his eyes.  _ Ah… this isn’t healthy, _ was the only thing Hizashi could think. The blonde sat on the coffee table facing Shouta and the hoard of pokemon. He clasped his hands together.

“Shouta, we found Izuku and Chip.”

Black eyes widened. All of the pokemon lifted their heads. Kimika’s head popped out of the hallway. Nemuri sat by Hizashi. “We found him but we cannot reach him. Mandalay can’t get Izuku to respond to her telepathic messages. We are calling in a hero to link mind waves so that someone else can try talking to him. Shouta, we need you. Izuku and Chip need you.”

…

…

…

The man moved. Seviper slithered off of him as Shouta pushed himself up. Hizashi and Nemuri winced at the sound of popping joints. The two stood with him. Shouta placed the bathrobe on the couch oh so carefully. He turned to them with a new fire in those eyes. Hizashi smirked. “Go get ready, Eraserhead. We leave in thirty.”

  
Well, that was the plan anyway. Shouta took a few steps into the kitchen before his eyes rolled back in his head and he passed out. Something tells Hizashi that Shouta hadn’t slept in a good few days. Or even stood for that matter aside from using the bathroom or something. The bloodrush must have been terrible. 

____________________________

Shouta woke up a few hours later. He could have used a good day more of sleep but they didn’t have time for that. He was in a rush. He took a quick shower and got dressed in his hero gear.    
“Sho, we got to go! The hero just arrived!” He threw open the bathroom door and sprinted to the front door. Smokey stepped in his path. They met eyes. Shouta nodded. “You are coming along too, am I right.” “Doom.” 

Hizashi passed him a quick shot energy drink in the car. “Details,” Shouta gasped out as he finished it in one go. “Mandalay and Ragdoll were in the Santalune Forest when Izuku’s thoughts crossed Mandalay’s telepathic waves. Ragdoll used Search and found Izuku and Chip underground somewhere. Mandalay couldn’t get Izuku to respond to her own telepathic messages so Nedzu contacted Link Waves so that you could try and talk to him As far as we know the only things Izuku has thought in the past one and a half days is that he wants you-” Shouta’s heart clenched “- that he is scared, that something hurts, and that it is, of course, okay. It is a mix of all of those just in rapid progression except for the times he is silent and we are pretty sure he is unconscious then. He’s silent a lot.” 

Shouta’s hands curl into tight fists. Christmas is in a week and if this isn’t the best Christmas present he can think of then Shouta doesn’t know what is. This better work.

They get out of the car just outside of the Santalune Forest where Mandalay, Link Waves, Principal Nedzu, and a handful of other heroes were waiting as well as an ambulance. Shouta knows that Ragdoll, who is still in the forest, can check the health conditions of those she is tracking. Judging by the ambulance present, Shouta supposes it probably isn’t going all so swell for Izuku and Chip right now.

He, Umbreon, Absol, Seviper, and Smokey walk up to greet the band of heroes. “Eraserhead, I presume?” a man in a red clock that covers his shoulders and body asks. Shouta nods. “Link Waves,” he holds out his hand, “thank you for doing this.” The hero takes and shakes it. “Of course. We better get going. Ragdoll is getting anxious.” Shouta nods. He slides on his goggles. “We haven’t a moment to spare,” Nedzu shouts. “Heroes, move out!”

It was a good fifteen minute jog into the depths of the forest before they caught sight of Ragdoll. She ran up to them frantically. “Oh my goodness, you are here!” she sounded as if she was about to cry. “They’re hurting them! They are hurting them so badly!” Mandalay took her by the shoulders. “Calm down. We are getting them out of there.” She turned to the heroes and threw her arm out. “Fan out! Take cover in and behind trees and rocks. We don’t know how many will come out or if any will come out. Just be ready! Eraserhead, Link Waves, come with me.” Shouta stepped up to the plate. He and Link Waves were guided to sit down. Mandalay looked up again and spoke to the hidden heroes. “No matter what happens, protect these two. For the entirety of whatever happens, they need to be the ones to guide Izuku and Chip here. They  _ have to stay connected _ .” She looks back to the two heroes in waiting. “Somewhere below the surface are Izuku and Chip. You will know it is them by their rapid thoughts surrounding the two words ‘Dad’ and ‘Okay’. Eraserhead, if Izuku and Chip should begin to move as they have been in one place for a long time it would seem, you need to signal to your pokemon to send up a singular beam of power, an attack, something to notify Izuku and Chip of our position. We don’t know where they will exit or if they will even try but if they breach the ground you have to tell them to follow the beam. Got it?” Shouta nodded sharply. “Got it.” Mandalay stood and walked backwards to the trees. “Bring him back, Eraser.” She disappeared into the trees.

Link Waves looked over at him. “Are you ready?” Another sharp nod. “I am.” The hero looked down, closing his eyes. Shouta watched as a glowing ring formed around Link Waves head floating. It was silent for a long time. Shouta listened to the way the wind blew through the leaves. For a month straight he spent countless hours on patrol, on the web, digging through the files to try and find his sons. They had found them. Now it was time to bring them home.

Link Waves held out his hand. His purple eyes opened to slits, looking over at Shouta. The raven-haired man took a deep breath. He took hold of the hand and the two shut their eyes. A glowing ring formed around his head. “I am about to connect your mind to the student’s. It might be a little choppy due to the distance and physical barrier between but it should work,” Link Waves informed him. Shouta gave an affirmative hum. He waited and waited and tried to still his beating heart and waited some more.

‘ _ H- ts.’ _ Shouta’s eyebrows furrowed.  _ ‘B-rns. I don- li-e this.’  _ It was Izuku’s voice.  _ ‘It- okay. Dad- ay. Dad’s ok- y.’ _ Shouta took a shaky breath. His son’s voice… it sounded so pained. It sounded so scared.

‘ **_Izuku_ ** _ ,’  _ he thought into the void. The stream of words and worries came to a halt.  _ ‘ _ **_I’m here._ ** _ ’ _

____________________________

* **beepbeepbeepbeepbeep-** *

“Something’s wrong with the test subjects!” “The professor is still in there!” “The door won’t open!”

* **!BAM!** *

“Someone override the security system!”

* **!BAM!** *

“What is that sound?” “Let me out! Get me out of here!” “Open the doors now!”

* **!SHATTER!** *

The sound of glass broke. “Run!” the professor screamed. “Get out while you can! Get- AHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!”


	25. !Medication Fun!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku and Chip are out and the villains don't like that too much!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone doing?

_ It hurts. Everything hurts. It’s okay. I’m tired. Dad, where are you. Okay? Dad’s okay. It hurts- _

_ ‘Iz- u. It- Man- lay.’ _

_ It’s okay. We’re okay. It hurts. That’s okay. Where’s Dad?- _

_ ‘Izuk- re- y. Whe- e ar- u? Izu-’ _

_ I’m tired… Don’t want this. It’s okay. I’m tired… _

_ ‘Izu- u! Don- sleep! Han- n th- e! Iz-! Da- g it!’  _

…

…

…

_I’m tired._ _It hurts._

 _Where’s Dad?_ _I’m scared._ _It hurts._

 _It’s okay._ _I’m tired._ _Dad?_ _Okay._

_ I’mtiredithurtswhereisDadI’mscaredit’sokayithurtsithurtsithurtsit’sokayI’mtiredI’mscaredit’sokayithurtswhereisDadithurtsithutsit’soka- _

_ ‘ _ **_Izuku_ ** _ ,’ _ rainbow eyes snap open,  _ ‘ _ **_I’m here._ ** _ ’ _

_ Dad? _

_ ‘Yes, it’s m-’ _

_ Where? Where’s Dad?! Where- _ A heart monitor went off in the background.

_ ‘Izuku, calm down. I need you to listen to me.’  _ The door to the laboratory opened and in walked the professor.

_ Where are you?! Dad?! DAD?! _

_ ‘I’m here, I promise. Izuku you need to calm down, okay?’ _ A few buttons were pressed and more gas began to filter in the breathing mask.  _ ‘Izuku, I am above the ground right now. You are underground. Do you know where you are?’ _

The greenette felt his mind begin to fog over. Panic filtered in.  _ No! I don’t want to go asleep again! I don’t want the knife again! No! NO! DAD! _

_ ‘Izuku! It’s okay!’ _ Izuku’s heart skipped a beat.  _ ‘It’s okay,’  _ Dad’s voice seemed to promise.  _ ‘I need you to come to me. If you can get above the ground we can get you and Chip to safety.’ _

Izuku’s face twisted in rage and fear.  _ Get out. Get out! GET OUT! _

\-----

_ ‘What are you going to do today?’ _

_ ‘Go to UA.’ _

_ ‘And?’ _

_ Come straight back.’ _

_ \----- _

_ ‘Obey.’ _

\-----

Sparks flashed off of his body. The lights and mechanics in the laboratory began flashing and sparking in response. The professor reeled back, making a break for the door. The security system went off, sealing the large metal doors shut. The professor banged on it.

\-----

_ ‘ObEy.’ _

\-----

_ ‘Come to me, Izuku.’ _

He lashed out, kicking against the glass tube he was in. * **!BAM!** * “Someone override the security system!” the professor yelled.

_ ‘CoMe To Me, IzUkU.’ _

He pushed off of the back of the tube and rammed his body into the glass tube so hard it began to wobble on the ground. * **!BAM!** * “Let me out! Get me out of here!” The professor yelled again, slamming on the door.

_ ‘ _ **_COME TO ME, IZUKU._ ** _ ’ _

With a scream into the mask, Izuku slammed against the container. * **!SHATTER!** * The glass broke, the slimy liquid spilling out all over the lab. Izuku came tumbling out. The gas mask ripped off and the needle in his chest slipped out. _I’m coming for you._ _‘That’s right. Come to me and-’_

_ \----- _

_ ‘Come to me and I’ll-’ _

_ \----- _

_ ‘- I’ll make it okay.’ _

Izuku screeched. The lights strobed. He dragged his body to its feet. His rainbow eyes met the brown eyes of the professor. “Run!” the man yelled to his team of scientists on the other side. Izuku took a step forward, the ground cracking. “Get out while you can!” Izuku leapt, claws flashing in the flashing lights. “Get- AHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!” They ripped through the professor’s abdomen. Blood spewed from the wound. The man fell to the floor, blood pooling out of him. Smoke puffed out of Izuku’s mouth. He stood straight. His head lulled back over his shoulder. Chip’s own rainbow eyes, as crazed and dilated as Izuku’s own, flashed back at him. The teen disappeared from his spot in a flash of lightning and light, reappearing in front of Chip’s container, fist pulled back. He swung. 

* **!SHATTER!** *

The Jolteon fell out of the container. They met eyes.

\-----

_ ‘ _ **_COME._ ** _ ’ _

____________________________

“You can’t go back! It’s dangerous!” yelled one scientist to the other “It’s more dangerous to leave the products back there! They’ll kill us!” “Dang it!” They sprinted back as the others began to try and turn on the security sedating gas to put all of the subjects to sleep in a room. “Wh- what’s that?” Scientist one pointed at the metal door. It began to glow from the middle. The two stopped, back tracing their steps slowly. Steam began to rise from around. When it cleared, a hole melted through it revealed a teenage boy with long, curly red hair on fire and red eyes. His teeth were bared, two sharp canines flashing in the light. Fingernails long and sharp like claws fashed from a glowing orange to white again as they cooled off. Beside him was a Flareon with smoke coming from its mouth and eyes.

“St- stay back!” the second scientist screamed.” The two figures ran at them. They threw up their arms to protect themselves but… the test subjects just ran right past leaving melted floor in the wake of each foot and pawstep.

They looked at each other. Both scrambled to their feet. One took out its radio. “The test subjects are loose!”

____________________________

Shouta the other heroes and the students from his class who came along all looked up in the direction of a loud rumbling. Only a handful of Class 1-A students were able to come as this was a sort of covert mission. Those who came were Hitoshi, Kaminari, Todoroki, Uraraka, and Ketchum. They were all in hiding. There was the sound of muffled explosions going off in the distance. “He’s coming,” Shouta stated out loud. Link Waves opened his eyes. “And he is  _ not _ happy.”

* **!BOOM!** *

Smoke rose not too far away from them. “Umbreon, now!” Shouta commanded. Umbreon let out a Dark Pulse into the sky. Shouta closed his eyes.  _ ‘This way, Izuku.’  _ Something akin to a growl mixed with ‘okay’ mixed with ‘come’ echoed in his mind. Explosions were zigzagging their way, smoke billowing up here and there but definitely getting closer. No, a bit away. “Umbreon, again!” Another Dark Pulse went up into the air. The explosions switched directions. “He’s coming!” Shouta shouted, warning those around them.

Two bright lights flashed behind a few trees. Shouta’s eyes widened as he realized the zigzagging lights were Izuku and Chip coming toward them. Another explosion of quirk and pokemon move hit near them throwing the lights off course. Shouta stood up and cupped his hands over his mouth. “IZUKU! CHIP!” he cried out. The lights were up in a flash, faster than ever coming at them. They broke through a small tunnel of trees Shouta could barely recognize them but his heart did. He held out his arms. “Come to me!” Izuku and Chip, in a more intense Flareon form, lit up in evolutionary light but it was flickering, as if it couldn’t quite sync. “Smokey, I’m gonna need you to be a wall,” Shouta whispered. The Houndoom came out of hiding and laid behind Shouta’s back. A few men and women in lab coats came into view with their pokemon chasing.

“Heroes, attack!” The squad of hiding heroes jumped out of every tree and from behind every rock. The scientists and pokemon all screeched to a halt, Izuku and Chip being the only one’s moving. The heroes ran to meet the opposing forces as pokemon and quirks began to activate.

One scientist pulled out a shotgun, aiming it at Izuku. Shouta’s eyes widened. * **BAM** * “Izuku!” Pixie-Bob slammed her hands to the earth floor, drawing it up into a wall that caught it in between the shooters and the targets. The evolution finally completed. Izuku, with long, spiky yellow hair and electric eyes and Chip as a Jolteon sped up substantially. Shouta blinked and when his eyes opened again, Izuku was right in his face. They collided, Shouta’s back slamming into Smokey behind them.

It hurt, the electricity bouncing off of his son was excruciating, but that didn’t matter because this was his  _ son _ . Tears filled his eyes. Shouta leaned down, swiping Chip from the ground in one arm and wrapping the other around Izuku, and he cried. Izuku’s arms wrapped around him. He gripped at Shouta’s shirt, claws ripping into it and tearing into Shouta’s back but he didn’t mind. As the battle raged on in front of them, explosions and light flashing behind tightly shut eyelids filled with salty tears, the Aizawa family sat and cried.

Many were arrested, a few scientists getting away. The heroes all slowly made their way back to Shouta, Smokey, Chip, Izuku, and Link Waves. Suddenly, Izuku and Chip lurched from his arms. Shouta fumbled forward for them. The two screeched in pain. Lighting bounced off of them in every direction as they writhed on the floor. “Eraserhead!” Hizashi pulled him away. “It’s not safe!” Shouta struggled against the man. “They are hurting! Let me go to them!”

Out of the forest, Todoroki skated on an ice path reaching the writhing beings. He crouched under the lighting and right up to Izuku and Chip. He lifted his arms, something in both hands, and slammed them down against the sides of his friends. A lightning bolt hit him. He cried out and jumped away. Soon, Izuku and Chip stopped moving. They devolved. Todoroki fell on his utt panting.

“What did you do?” Nemuri asked. The bi-colored boy held up his open hands to reveal two needles with small capsules on them. “Sedation bullets were in that gun,” he panted.

Hizashi finally let go of Shouta. The raven-haired man stumbled forward. He fell on his knees before his sons. Izuku looked so different. In only a month, his green hair had grown unruly and unnaturally long, reaching to his tailbone. His nails were long and sharp. His eyes weren’t green anymore. They were rainbow and slitted like an animal’s eyes. He had two sharp canines in his mouth like fangs. He was so different but this was his son. Shouta carefully picked up Chip and Izuku. Tears filled his eyes. The man doubled over and wailed. No one had the heart to stop him as the usually stoic man broke down before them. 

They did it. They got his sons back.

____________________________

Anger boiled in Tomura’s chest. The cup in his hand dissolved into dust under his cup. “They  _ lost _ the subjects?” Jessie, James, and Meowth, three of his best chest pieces, call them knights, stood a bit further away from them in the underground backup bunker for the League of Villains as the bar had been destroyed. “That is what they have reported, Shigaraki, sir.”

Tomura stood, slowly crossing the gap between them. “And what were they doing with these test subjects?” James gulped audibly. “They were ma-” “Making the UA brat into a human pokemon, right?” Tomura placed his hand on the taller man’s shoulder. James flinched as his skin slowly began to erode. “Do you know why we were doing that? Because Sensei was around to handle it. The experiments were supposed to stop if Sensei was somehow not with us. Tell me, where is Sensei now?”

Blood began to roll from James’ shoulder, darkening his white top. He bit his tongue. “I- in Tartarus, sir.” Tomura’s face broke in a wicked grin. “That’s right,” he let go of the man but the eroding did not stop for a good minute leaving a gaping hole on James’ shoulder. “Do you know why we had to have him for this experiment?” Jessie shook her head. “N- no, sir.” Tomura threw out his arms. “Because it’s dangerous! Do you think we would really just make a basic pokemon out of some quirkless NPC?! We were making a freaking Nomu! Not only a Nomu but a freaking high-end one! That was supposed to be our test trial! We were making something we could control without Sensei EVENTUALLY!” Tomura growled, kicking a chair. “Can you defeat a Nomu?” he asked rhetorically. “No, I didn’t think so. Not only that, they tried to cheat the system by speeding up the process because Sensei got taken away!”

He whipped around to Kurogiri waiting for orders in the corner. “Kurogiri, contact the Yakuza and the Meta Liberation Army. I know they are starting to move now.” He opened the door to his sleeping quarters. Tomura’s face darkened. “If by some miracle that brat survives being broken out like that in his incomplete form then we are going to have a real problem on our hands. We are getting him back and completing his coding.”

Tomura slammed the door behind him. He scratched at his neck painfully.  _ Dang it! Dang it! Dang it! This isn’t how this game was supposed to go! They used cheat codes! _

“Darkrai,” his shadow pokemon floated over. Tomura wraps his hands around the pokemon, gripping it tightly. Darkrai lets him. He’s the only thing that doesn’t disintegrate by Tomura’s touch. Sometimes it helps to just be able to curl your fists. “I’ll fix it Sensei,” he promises to the air. “I’ll tear apart this hero society for you!”

____________________________

Shouta was ordered to go home and rest after the rescue. Though he refuted all the way to the bed, as soon as his head hit the pillow he was out. Exhaustion had taken its course in him. He slept for a whole sixteen hours and then some and when he woke up he had contracted a stress induced fever that kept him bedridden for a couple more days. When he finally was strong enough to get out of bed, Shouta’s first matter of business was seeing his sons and they had no reason to stop him. He drove to the emergency care hospital where Izuku and Chip were being held.

Doctor Suzuki leads him down the white corridors. “Midoriya,”  _ we need to get that changed fast _ , “is still unconscious,” he states. Shouta hums. “What for, may I ask?” “We are actually keeping them under ourselves. I am sure you saw the physical changes to his body. We ran some tests and found that nearing half of his cells have been injected with the genes of his Eevee.” Shouta’s feet fell short. He stopped. “What?” Doctor Suzuki nodded, stopping as well. “And these cells are charged. They are far more powerful and strong than normal human cells. As it is now, his body is fighting them. The Eevee genes are foreign to his body. It’s slowly changing Midoriya into sort of a hybrid. We did an xray of his body as well and found that a strange stone had been forced under his ribs. Because the flesh has already grown over and around it we are unable to identify it or safely remove it. We did try and wake him up twice but each time he was in so much pain that we had to put him under again. His body is literally tearing itself apart from the inside out. The radioactivity of that slime substance he was covered in isn’t helping in the slightest. Of course he is all cleaned up now but constant exposure to radioactivity never does anyone much good.”

Shouta’s heart fell.

“So for the time being, until his cells sort themselves out we are keeping him under,” Doctor Suzuki continued walking. Shouta followed. “And Ch- Eevee? What about him?” “He’s awake,” Doctor Suzuki replies. “But he also had some things done to him and we need him for testing with Midoriya so he is staying. Can’t say he is very responsive though but I can’t blame him considering the circumstances.” They stop outside of the room. “Please take as much time as you need.” Shouta bowed. “Thank you, Doctor.”

Doctor Suzuki left. Shouta took a deep breath. He opened the door to Izuku and Chip’s hospital room. The beeping of machines filled his ears. Tears almost instantly breached his eyelids when he saw Izuku laying there on that bed. His green hair was so long now. It almost encased him. He was pale against those white hospital sheets. Over his mouth and nose was a breathing mask. Chip lifted his head from Izuku’s chest.

“VEE!” he jumped off. Shouta knelt down and caught the small pokemon in his arms. “Hey, Chip. G- good to see you.” Chip rubbed his head against Shouta’s chin. The man let out a watery chuckle. “What? Did you miss me that much?” “Eevee…” “I know, I know.” He pet the Eevee. “I’m here now.”

Shouta put Chip on the cot next to Izuku’s. “Give me a second, alright?” He took off the rather large backpack he was carrying on his back and placed it next to Chip. “Well now, I had a feeling you two would be here for a while,” he mused, “so I brought a few things from home.” Chip peered into the bag. Shouta pulled out Izuku’s big, fluffy galaxy themed comforter. “I hear they allow this for long term patients. If not then they can suck it up.” Shouta let out Umbreon, Absol, Seviper, Smokey, and Pepper. Also not allowed but as aforementioned: they could suck it up. Pepper squealed upon seeing Izuku. “Hold up, let me get him situated first. Seviper, Umbreon, mind helping me?” The two lifted Izuku’s arms while Shouta put the blanket over him. They pushed him up a bit so Shouta could put two of the fluffiest pillows Izuku had behind him. “Just in case you do wake up,” he pulled out Izuku’s sketchbook and a few pencils, setting them on the metal desk beside the cot. He also plugged in Izuku’s phone to the nearest outlet. “Vee!” Chip dove into the bag and pulled out Shouta’s bathrobe. The man chuckled. “Yes, yes, that too.” Chip jumped onto his trainer’s lap and curled around in the bathrobe before laying down.

“See? Much better.” It was sort of stalled in Shouta’s chest. He felt kind of numb but a good numb. He was sad that Izuku was in such a poor state but he was so happy they were back. Pepper jumped up. “Yena?” she sniffed at Chip. The Eevee lifted his head. Pepper rubbed her head against his before curling around next to him. Chip lazily laid his head across her back. Shouta frowned. Chip looked so depressed. He supposes that he can’t blame the poor pokemon. As Shouta pulled up a chair beside the bed Smokey sat by it and laid his head on top of Izuku’s legs. The other pokemon joined as well. Shouta sat. He came prepared to stay for a good few hours having brought a book along with him. Shouta began to read aloud. 

It was a very bittersweet reunion and with that Christmas Break started.

____________________________

* **Ding Ding** *

Hitoshi opened his phone. He was currently packing up his room. After Christmas break all of the UA students would be moving on campus for a dorming system in order to better protect them.  _ Ha, like all of the other measures they put in place worked, _ he thought bitterly. He remembered the way Izuku looked, convulsing on the floor of the forest like that. Hitoshi shook his head, a few stray tears flying.  _ He’s back. That’s all that matters. _

  
  


**Class 1-A Group Chat:**

**Kirishima:** Christmas Party at the hospital! Who is in?

**Iida:** That is surely prohibited!

**Kirishima:** Me and Mina talked to Mic-sensei though! He said he’d get us in!

**Iida:** If the teacher has accepted it then I suppose it is fine.

**Ashido:** Whoot Whoot!

**Kirishima:** Of course there are some restrictions and all.

**Sato:** What are they?

  
  


Izuku is still unconscious but the class wants to celebrate with him too. Kirishima and Ashido surprisingly went very in depth into their search on whether or not this could happen.They recruited the help of Present Mic and Midnight. Apparently the hospital was about to take Izuku off of the sedating gas they have him on periodically due to health hazards and switch it out with just massive amounts of pain medication. He will be very loopy, probably not very interactive, and probably not recognize half of them but he will be awake and Chip has been awake for a while now. Despite his rough exterior actions, the class found out just how sentimental of a person Izuku really is. So the plan is to celebrate at the hospital with him in this state, take a bajillion pictures, and make a photo album of them. With the hospital staff’s approval, they can bring in a few snacks as long as they are all allergy free such as no nuts or other outwardly allergic items that being in the same vicinity of will cause someone to react to it. They will have to set it all up the day off and tear down the day off and it can’t get too loud, only quiet background music and board games. Nothing beyond a few string lights for anything requiring electricity. And so on, so forth. It wasn’t as restrictive as Hitoshi thought it would be but he has a feeling a few strings were being pulled behind the scenes.

He sent a text saying that he’d be coming. Hitoshi rested his forehead against the corner of the box. He let out a bedraggled sigh. He’d like to see Izuku without the whole class at some point. Hitoshi misses his best friend.

____________________________

“I don’t know if this qualifies as a Christmas present but they are waking Izuku up today,” Shouta’s head shot up at Hizashi’s statement. They were heading to the hospital two days before Christmas. “You’re waking him up?” he breathes out. Hizashi gives a seesaw motion with his hand. “If you could call it that. His eyes will be open at least. Can’t really promise Izuku will be very responsive. He’s going to be so drugged up he minus well be asleep still.”

Shouta looked out of the car’s window. A jittery smile formed on his lips.  _ Izuku’s going to be awake! _

It was hard to not run down the halls of the emergency hospital. Doctor Suzuki laughed at his excitement. “He won’t recognize you, Eraserhead, sir. Midoriya has been awake for about thirty minutes now and hasn’t done anything more than blink.” “Doesn’t matter,” Shouta hurriedly replied. The man shrugged. They stopped outside of Izuku’s door. “Well, I’d tell you to take your time but you practically live here already. Call for me if anything happens.”

Shouta bows. “Thank you, Doctor.” He is practically vibrating. Hizashi rolls his eyes. He opens the door and walks in. “Hey, little listeners!” he cheered. Shouta pokes his head in, uncannily nervous. Izuku is awake with half-lidded rainbow eyes. They blink lazily at the blonde. Chip looks up from Izuku’s lap before putting his head down again. He’s not one for interacting much nowadays. Izuku’s bed had been pushed up to a reclined position. Shouta takes a deep breath and walks in. “Hey, kid.”

The heart monitor beeped an extra time. Hizashi looked over at the previously unresponsive teen. “Eh? Shouta, do that again.” Shouta walked into Izuku’s line of sight. “Good to see you awake, Izuku.” The heart monitor skipped a beat this time. Those half-lidded eyes stayed on Shouta the whole time he was walking up to the bed. Hizashi chuckled. “Sometimes having a messed up mind isn’t so bad if he can recognize you like this.” Shouta huffed. “Don’t even joke about that.” He sat on the edge of Izuku’s bed. Shouta took Izuku’s hand. “Hey, kid, I’m here.”

And if Izuku were lucid enough to understand that, he might have even cried. 

It was decided that Izuku would not go on the sedation gas again and instead stay on the pain medicine. They would filter it out of his system with lower doses as the cells repaired themselves and decided which cell, the normal or the hybrid, would take over Izuku’s body. It was a slow process but they were certain if they waited long enough Izuku’s normal cells would win out. 

The next day, on Christmas Eve, much to Shouta’s surprise the students of Class 1-A came in one at a time and set up a Christmas party.

____________________________

Hitoshi did  _ not _ cry when he saw Izuku again for the first time. He came a little bit early for the party.

* **knock knock knock** *

“Who is it?” Mic-sensei’s voice called from inside the hospital room. “Shinsou Hitoshi,” Hitoshi replied. “Come on in!” So he did. Izuku was found on the hospital bed. He was leaning on Shouta’s arm who was also on the hospital bed. Tears threatened to breach his eyes. Hitoshi closed the door and made his way over to the bed. It looked as though Izuku’s room from home, though Hitoshi had never seen it before, had gradually taken over the hospital room. There was his comforter, his bed, his sketchbook and phone, a few pokemon plushies here and there, some flowers, a lamp that had stars on it, glow in the dark stickers on the wall and sky. He was surprised the hospital was allowing all of this but in retrospect the hospital was probably informed upon Izuku’s mental state and wanted him to come into reality in a place that wasn’t a laboratory because if Hitoshi’s information was correct, Izuku and Chip were tested on in a similar place. They found it in the search after the rescue following the trail of broken trees and boulders. 

“H- hey,” he whispered. It felt wrong to speak at a normal volume for some reason even if Mic-sensei yelled for him to come in. Shouta waved. “He hears you, I think. He just doesn’t understand what you are saying to a certain degree. He also isn’t paying attention so don’t hope to get much out of him.” Hitoshi nods. He walks over. “I just… I had to see him with my own eyes.” Izuku was staring down at his lap fiddling with the end of Shouta’s capture weapon. He had two IV’s in his arm. One fed him nutrients and the other fed him pain medication. 

“Eevee!” Chip, who became more active once Izuku had woken up, bounded over from sitting with Smokey and Pepper in his cot. Hitoshi kneels down. “Hey, Chip!” Hitoshi couldn’t help the smile that split his face.  _ They’re alive! They are really alive! _

Many of his classmates thought the same thing when they first saw Izuku and Chip. Kaminari really did cry. The guilt he felt probably would never leave him but it was good to see his ‘buddy’ alive. Or his friend in general.

Izuku seemed amazed by the party. It was obvious that he had no clue what was going on though. There were a few colorful string lights strung here and there and colorful streamers. A small table in the back held a few snacks and drinks. Shouta got Izuku to drink a bit of actual liquid, having to help the boy swallow a bit by tilting his head back and rubbing his throat. A bit odd but probably better than just being fed his nutrients and liquids through an IV. Someone played Christmas music in the background on their phone. They gathered around with multiple board games on the floor. Most of them brought what doubled as a Christmas present/card and get well card for Izuku. He wouldn’t be opening any of them for some time but the sentiment was still there. They did a small gift exchange as well. A  _ lot _ of pictures were taken. Each took turns sitting with Izuku and Shouta and taking a funny picture of some sort. As long as they didn’t try and pull Izuku away from their teacher it went fine. He got sort of agitated if anyone tried to lean him up and away. Chip was enjoying seeing everyone again, if not a bit skittish. He was eating up all of the attention. The students all gave their regards to Shouta as well. They were glad to see a smile on his face.

It was a good day all considering. The students of Class 1-A felt more at ease having seen Izuku and Chip alive and semi-well. 

“Say cheese!” Ashido set up the camera with a time on the table across the room. Everyone piled around Izuku’s hospital bed, even the teachers. Shouta reached over and gently pushed Izuku’s head to an upward position. “CHEESE!” everyone yelled. Izuku mumbled something unintelligible, just following the crowd’s lead, but it all made them smile brighter.

* **snap** *

“I’ll put together the photo album,” Kaminari volunteered. “I am actually really good at computers. Jiro nodded. “I’ll help.” So that was the plan. They all chipped in a little bit of money for them all to get a copy.

“Aizawa-sensei,” Iida walked up to their teacher. “Would you like some help moving into the dorms? I understand that you will have a connected apartment to Class 1-A’s dormitory, correct?” Shouta nodded. “That’s right. Izuku will probably stay living with me with everything that has happened. I think we will be fine moving in on our own though, thank you.” The students were eager to help the Aizawa family. They had been through so much. Hitoshi looked up.  _ I didn’t know that. _ Kaminari held up his hand. “C- could we keep a room for him in the dorms still, though? You know, like, he could just come and hang for a while and all but still have his own space…” Hitoshi put his hand on Kaminari’s shoulder. It was a nice sentiment. Shouta nodded. “I’m sure he’d like that.” The blonde brightened up.

And so they began to pack up and leave. They left some of the streamers taped up on the ceiling to add to the room that was slowly becoming less of a hospital room. “See you later, Izuku, Chip!” “We’ll come visit again!” “Merry Christmas!”

Hitoshi was the last to leave. He pet Chip goodbye and waved to Izuku and Shouta. “Next time I come, let’s video call Serena, k?” Izuku blinked slowly at the ceiling. Gosh, he looked exhausted. Hitoshi has to wonder how it feels to be completely numb like that. He wonders if it is the same foggy feeling his quirk makes or not. He wonders how much of today Izuku actually knew happened or if he would remember any of it at all. Hitoshi figures he will find out sooner or later.

And so he leaves with a weight lifted off of his shoulders. His best friend is alive.

____________________________

* **knock knock knock** *

The hospital room door opens. Doctor Suzuki pops his head in. “I am afraid visiting hours are long over,” he informs them. Shouta looks up from the card he was reading to Izuku and Chip. They had let the party go on for quite a while past visiting hours. He looked to his side. Izuku was sound asleep against him. The doctor chuckles. “Allow me.” He helps get the sleeping ten off of Shouta and the man slide under the IV tubes. “It always does the heart good to see the patients doing well,” Doctor Suzuki muses as he carefully settles Izuku in his hoard of pillows. “Especially in the Emergency Ward. I’ve seen far too many come in here alive and not leave the same.” Shouta frowns. He pulls the blanket up over Izuku. Shouta carefully picks up the sleeping Chip and sets him on Izuku’s lap. He wraps his bathrobe around the Eevee. “Thank you for taking such good care of them, Doctor Suzuki.”

The man shakes his head. “It is simply my job.” 

Shouta watches as snow quietly drifts to the ground on his drive home. He hadn’t brought his pokemon with him because of the number of people that were at the party so when he got home they all greeted him happily. He let out Pepper and Smokey from their balls. Mom came out of the hallway with her hair wrapped up in a towel, fresh from the shower. The whole Aizawa household was a bit happier though the solemn silence of the missing Izuku and Chip hung over it like a wet mop. Shouta settled on the couch with a sigh. His arm felt practically numb from Izuku leaning on it. The man yawned, flopping on his side. He was just dozing when he felt his mother put his feet on the couch and drape a blanket over him. Shouta hummed as she lifted his head and placed a pillow beneath it. “Love you,” he whispered. She giggled quietly. “Love you too.”

The lights were turned off but the small purple hue from Litwiks flame lit up a bit of the room. Shouta’s eyes fluttered open. He looked around the room. The snow was falling, the world was asleep, and his eyes landed on a red box with a green top and bow under the tree, the same one that held the adoption papers for Izuku and Chip. Shouta smiled sadly and closed his eyes.

_ Get well soon, Izuku. I can’t wait to adopt you. _

____________________________

Chisaki Kai watched the leader of the League of Villains leave with his slaves feeling absolutely repulsed. In his clean meeting room this man came in some scraggy clothes, with dry, cracking skin, a hand of all things on his face and more on his body, and he is offering a partnership with the Yakuza. Kai glanced over at the two people and the pokemon the man left with him. Woman with over zealous pink hair, a man with rich boy pastel purple hair, and a talking Meowth. Great. 

Kai and Shigaraki’s ideals clashed. While he was trying to make profit off of quirks and the hero world Shigaraki was trying to bring it to its knees. Something tells Kai that there is more to the story than the villain is letting off. For now, he will use these pawns the man has given to him and see how things turn out. If he plays his cards right, Kai might make more profit off of the League of Villains’ mistakes and be able to take them over completely. The Yakuza’s power would boost exponentially and then once again they would reign over the underworld.

Kai stood and left the room to sanitize himself.  _ What repulsive beings. _

____________________________

“Shiggy, you sure that was a good idea to leave Jessie and James there?” Toga bounded by Tomura’s side. A wicked grin grew on his face. “I’m messing with their coding a bit.”

The job was simple. With the Yakuza in the way they could not simply go in and take the half-Nomu creature they created and lost. The Yakuza were too reliant on the heroes for their cash. With them on the rise recently, they won’t just stand back and let Tomura play his game as he pleases so he needs a few knights in the Yakuza’s round table. All they have to do is find a way to draw the heroes to the Yakuza. The heroes will get rid of them for him.

“Kurogiri, how are things with the Meta NPCs?” he asked. “A meeting is being set up with them as we speak.” Tomura spat. “Meeting? Ha.” his eyes lit up in crazed light. “We’ll thrash those side characters and make them bow down to us.”

____________________________

“Eh?! Izuku?!”

Hitoshi’s head snapped up. The day before Christmas Break ends and the UA students were moving into the completed dormitories. Their belongings had already been shipped. It was time to set up their respective rooms. As Class 1-A gathered in front of Heights Alliance dorms, a grand structure for sure, Ketchum from down the path pointed past Hitoshi and to Shouta and… Izuku? The greenette sat in a wheelchair by his father with a portable drip bag with an IV attached to it stuck in Izuku’s left arm. The wheelchair had an attachable headrest to it where Izuku’s head rested kind of lopsided against it. He was still in his hospital gown but had a navy blue bathrobe drawn over it and some fuzzy slippers. Chip rested on his lap. Something tells Hitoshi he was still drugged up.

The purple-haired boy bounded over to Shouta. “What is he doing here?” he whispered. Shouta shrugged. “We lowered the doses of pain medication and he began to get antsy at the hospital so I got him admitted to join us today. Izuku,” the greenette glanced up, head lulling to the side, “say hi to Hitoshi.”  _ Ah, so he remembers his name now.  _ Rainbow eyes blinked at him. The boy murmured something that could be taken as a greeting. Shouta chuckled. “Yeah, that’s about it.” He pushed Izuku’s head back up. “He knows you, I promise. He remembered when I was reading your card to him. He just doesn’t have much control over his body and mind right now. More but not quite there. The doctor said they will be lowering the dose again if today’s outing goes well.”

Hitoshi nods. He waves at his dazed friend. “Good to see you out and about.” … Hitoshi just smiled and joined his classmates that were gathering. News about Izuku being here was slowly getting around. Shouta would probably explain it again to the whole class at some point. Or not. The man isn’t one for formalities like that.

* **clap clap** *

All of the student’s looked to Shouta. “Happy New Year and the like,” he waved his hand nonchalantly. “This is your new dorm. Follow me in and I will explain the layout.” He turned around and wheeled Izuku up the ramp on the right side of the stairs, there was one on either side, and into the building. The first floor interior was expansive containing a common room area much like a living room with a few sofas and single seats and a carpet, a large coffee table, and a big TV. Nearby a bit to the right was an expansive kitchen. In front of it was a large dining room table. “This is the first floor,” Shouta stated. In the kitchen there is a fridge that will be stocked weekly with food. You will have to decide who cooks and cleans and does all of that stuff amongst yourselves. I recommend starting a rotating chart of who does it on what days. It doesn’t matter but if you don’t keep up with cleaning I will enforce it and make it a grade.” Everyone sweat dropped. He pointed over his shoulder. “To the left of the kitchen is a hallway. Directly to the left is the stairs to the floors above that will each have a designated number of student rooms, your rooms. A bit further down on the right is separate boys and girls bathrooms and bath houses.  _ Separate _ . At the end of the hall is a door that leads to another hall that leads to another door and behind that door is mine and Izuku’s house.”

Hitoshi peered down the hallway. It was quite a bit ways away but he supposes there was also the size of a few rooms above it in the structure of the building so the length made sense.

“Now,” Shouta pulled out a file with multiple papers in it, “these are the layouts of the rooms above. Each floor is separated into two halls. On the right are the girl’s dorms and on the left the boy’s.” He began to pass them out. “The rooms go as such:

**Second Floor** : as per request Izuku does have a room. It is the first one on that floor, 101. In 102 is Shinsou, 103 is Aoyama, and 104 is Kaminari. On the girl’s side, 105 is Uraraka and 108 is Asui.

**Third Floor** : Ojiro is room 201, Iida is room 202, Tanaka is room 203, and Todoroki is room 204. On the girl’s side 205 is Hagakure and 208 is Jiro.

**Fourth Floor** : 301 is Ketchum, 302 is Bakugou, 303 is Kirishima, and 304 is Shouji. For the girls room 305 is Ashido. That is all for the girls.

**Fifth Floor** : room 401 is Sero, Tokoyami is in room 402, Satou is in 403.”

_ So I’ll be right next to Izuku. Even if he won’t actually live there I have a feeling that was intentional. _ “On every floor there is a common bathroom for girls on the right of the girls hall at the end and a common bathroom for the boys at the end of the boys hall on the left. In the middle on each floor accessible from either side for both girls and boys is a laundry room at the end as well. Under no circumstances are is a boy allowed into a girls dorm room and vise versa. That is what the common area is for. Any questions?” There were none. “Alright, all of your belongings have already been delivered to your rooms. Go unpack and get set up.

Hitoshi had to hide his smirk as his classmates groaned with having to climb so many stairs. He was only on the second floor so he got the easy way out. “Do not complain! This is simply training for our bodies!” Iida chided. Sero glared at him. “Easy for you to say. You only have two flights.” Hitoshi snorted. He passed Izuku’s room and entered his own. There was a plaque outside of it on the door that read: Shinsou Hitoshi. The rooms were quite large.  _ Makes sense. We will have a few pokemon each by the end of our time here. _

“Come on out, you two!” He tossed Espurr’s and Purrloin’s pokeballs into the air. “Espurr!” “Purrloin!” “We’ve got a room to put together,” he gestures to the boxes. “So let’s get to work.”

Hitoshi does not envy those without psychic pokemon or psychic elements. Anyone with a psychic element can lift something about the weight of a pencil. Those who train it can do more like Madame Olympia but they usually focus on their quirks mostly. Espurr was a great help though. The bed and desk were already put together luckily. He had a nice sized closet for his clothing. All in all not a bad setup. They had to put up their own small bedside table though. He had Espurr pull the desk a bit away from the far wall on the left so he could put up the standing lamp he had next to it. He set up his school books, a couple regular books, and notebooks in and on his desk. He had laid out a dark purple fuzzy circular carpet on his floor, having Espurr lift the end of the bed for him to get it under. His bedding consisted of a grey comforter and some blue pillows. Hitoshi had a couple of posters. He wouldn’t let anyone know it and he wouldn’t let anyone know how he got it but he had an Eraserhead poster. He also had a cat one. Hitoshi put away all of his clothes in his closet.

\-----

_ ‘Th- thank you…’ _

\-----

Hitoshi smiles fondly on the first day he gave Izuku clothes. The boy was so happy it was contagious. Hitoshi has to wonder how he would have turned out if he hadn’t had met Izuku, Chip, Serena, and Fennekin. Would he have bent under the weight of his bullies at school? Would he have even had the courage to shoot for UA Trainer’s Academy? Izuku and Serena did a lot more for Hitoshi than they realized. He was a boy with divorced parents who sent one month with his Dad and then one month with his Mom. He had a misconception about love due to that even if both of his parents do love him. For the longest time he believed he was the reason they split despite their reassurances that it wasn’t his fault. Did they hold resentment towards him? Did they regret having a child with a quirk fit for a villain? The kids at school picked on him and bullied him for having a villainous quirk. Izuku and Serena, Fennekin and Chip, Hitoshi felt like they were the first to accept him without reservation.

\-----

_ ‘I used to get picked on as a kid for having the quirk that erased quirks,’ Shouta mused after hearing about Hitoshi’s quirk. ‘I just showed them that I was better.’ _

\-----

Shouta came next. He started helping Izuku train but in coming he also trained Hitoshi. Hitoshi wouldn’t have made it into the hero course if Shout and Umbreon didn’t train him and Espurr. They had no reason to. The promise they made was with Izuku, not him. He even watched Serena practice here and there and gave her criticism where he thought fit too. He may seem all rough and gruff but Shouta truly cared about them. The three of them knew the soft side of Shouta no one knew he had until Izuku’s falling out with the Midoriya’s, calling it lightly.

Hitoshi walked over to his own set of jewelry that rested on the edge of his desk, organized. Though a much smaller collection than Izuku’s and Chip’s, Hitshi ended up getting both ears pierced when the whole class decided on getting the single piercing to support Izuku and Chip. He had a couple of pairs of earrings himself and the chains Izuku originally had did come from him after all so Hitoshi had a few of those too.

Hitoshi picked up the second of the green pearl earrings and left the room. He turned to the right and found Bakugou outside of Izuku’s door. He was adding his own second pearl to the small line already forming on the border of Izuku’s room plaque. The blonde noticed him. “Tsk,” Bakugou clicked his tongue and stormed away. Hitoshi met Purrloin’s eyes. She gave a small cackle that Hitoshi mimicked. He walked up to add his own earring to the line. Hitoshi stopped, reading the plaque.

**Aizawa Izuku**

Hitoshi smiled.  _ Nice play there, Shouta. _ He added his earring. By the end of the day the entire plaque would be outlined in the dark green pearls. He made his way down to the common area. “What… are you doing?” Hitoshi questioned. Ashido looked up. “Doing his hair of course!” And she was. The pink girl and Uraraka were making full use of the elongated hair of Izuku. They did try to cut it but it was quick to grow out again. Though right now it was a bit shorter, reaching mid-back. They were braiding the curly green locks of hair. Izuku didn’t seem to mind. Or notice, really. He was more focused on Todoroki’s hand in front of him. The bicolored boy was crouched in front of Izuku with his right hand out. Little wisps of frost and snow were coming from it, swirling in the air before falling. Hitoshi sat next to Shouta on the couch.

“...toshi…”

All hands stopped. The ice stopped forming from Todoroki’s hand. Hitoshi lifted his head. Izuku’s head bobbed. His eyebrows furrowed. “Hmm,” Shouta reached over and tilted Izuku’s head up against the headrest. Rainbow eyes met Hitoshi’s own violet. They blinked slowly. “Hi… shi…?” Hitoshi might have cried. He didn’t but he was pretty darn close. Instead, he smiled. “Yeah, I’m here, Izuku.” Izuku averted his eyes back down to Todoroki’s hand, head lulling down again. Shouta snorted. “Told you.”

Hitoshi pet Purrloin’s head.  _ Yeah, everything is going to be okay. _

____________________________

With the success of Izuku’s outing the day before, the pain medication dosage was lowered again. Izuku began to recognize more faces. Not everyone but Shouta had started bringing Izuku to school every day and he had gotten a good portion of the class down. He was more vocal and could turn himself over in bed on his own and lift his own head now. Still, he can’t be considered very smart at the moment. He’s causing a few issues for the doctors and nurses at the hospital.

“The alarms went off because his heart skyrocketed this morning,” Doctor Suzuki sighed, rubbing his eyes. “Midoriya ‘got more comfortable’ and rolled over on his stomach pulling out the IVs in his arm. About an hour later the pain medicine dwindled and he went cold turkey for a good hour after that. Eraserhead, this boy has a lot of experience hiding his pain, am I right?” Shouta pursed his lips. “Yeah…” Doctor Suzuki nodded. “I won’t ask why but it took about two hours off of the medication completely for him to start showing signs of distress and the heart monitors to pick it up.” Shouta scratched the back of his head. “Sorry about that.” Doctor Suzuki waved him. “Don’t worry about it. It happens more often with patients on high medication than you would think.”

Shouta sat on the edge of Izuku’s bed when the doctor left. “You pleased with yourself after pulling that stunt.” Rainbow eyes glared at him. Izuku might not know exactly what Shouta said but he picked up the tone. The boy pushed his face back into the pillows. “Hurs…” Shouta sighed. “I know,” he whispered. He weaved under the cords and got in bed with Izuku. “Scooch, you bed hog,” he joked. Shouta pulled the blankets over his legs. Izuku rolled over on his side . He pushed himself up a bit.  _ Oh? That’s a new develo- _ “Oomph!” Izuku plopped his chest and head right across Shouta’s chest. The main chuckled painfully. “If you wanted a hug you could have just asked, you know?” He ran his hands through Izuku’s hair. “Bore…” Shouta nodded. “Yes, yes, I know.” Pepper jumped up and licked her trainer’s face before sitting on Shouta’s legs.

Shouta pulled out his phone and turned on Bridal Dresses. Izuku didn’t really watch but the boy was ‘bored’ so he had to do something less they have another incident like this morning.

* **tap tap tap** *

Shouta looked up at the door. “Who is it?” Shouta inquired. “Its Principal Nedzu,” a squeaky voice replied. He bit his tongue. Shouta had been dreading this conversation. They were waiting for Izuku to be a bit more lucid for it but it was bound to happen. “Come in.” Doctor Suzuki had to open the door for the small pokemon principal who could not quite reach the door. 

“Hello there, Aizawa, Izuku,” Nedzu waved. The greenette lifted his head a bit at his ame. He looked over at Nedzu. Rainbow eyes sparkled. “Ah,” he pointed over at Nedzu. Principal Nedzu climbed up on the bed and sat down. “Do you know me?” he asked. For a cynical minded being, Nedzu is quite the charmer around children and at this stage Izuku minus well be three or four years old. “Nedzuuu,” Izuku cooed. He reached forward for the pokemon but refused to lift his head from Shouta’s chest. “He’s getting active, I see,” Nedzu offered his paw to the boy. Shouta hummed. He knew what this was. Nedzu was testing to see where Izuku was in his recovery to decide his next words, words that Shouta didn’t want to hear. 

But Shouta also recognized a sort of sadness in Nedzu’s eyes. He distantly recalls hearing of Nedzu’s own run in with pokemon experimentation. It was what created the hybrid himself after all. He wonders if at one point Nedzu found himself in a similar state as Izuku.

Izuku took Nedzu’s paw and gave it a weak squeeze. He let out something akin to a giggle. “Soft?” Nedzu asked. Izuku just squeezed it again. 

Principal Nedzu looked up at Shouta. “Aizawa,” his voice changed from kind to a more serious tone, “I think we should reconsider Izuku’s attendance at UA Trainer’s Academy.”  _ Ah, there it is _ . Izuku squishing Nedzu’s paw and giggling again did not fit the atmosphere. “I know he is recovering, don’t get me wrong, but I am sure you know what will happen once Izuku becomes lucid again.”

Chip jumps up and curls protectively next to Izuku. Yeah, Shouta knows exactly what will happen. It will be something similar to Izuku coming off the laughing gas at the UA Sports Festival. He slowly began remembering what he was returning home to. This time it will probably be, like, a thousand times worse. The boy is already clinging to Shouta even while mentally impaired. Chip is fine most of the time but some days when Shouta comes he runs up in a panic and won’t leave the man’s side. A big reason why they are very slowly releasing Izuku from the effects of the pain medication is because they don’t want the first lucid thought for him to have is that he is in pain. He needs to ‘wake up’ in a safe, comfortable, not painful environment.

“This has happened though,” Shouta says. “When we got them out of the Midoriya’s house he was similar.” Nedzu shakes his head. “You know very well that is nothing near to the scale that this will be.” 

“Zu…?” Izuku pulls on the principal’s paw. Nedzu smiles sadly down at him. “I am sorry that this has happened to them. It is our job to protect and raise our students but I fear we have made a grave mistake somewhere.” Shouta looked down. “I am not asking you to make a decision right now,” Nedzu continues, “and I completely understand you wanting to let Izuku choose his path as Mr. Midoriya did not but as his legal guardian you need to think about what is the best for him. Heroism isn’t the right path for everyone. It doesn’t have to be a complete removal. Perhaps maybe to general studies? He could pursue a new career path. Hero course students usually go to the workforce right after high school. He could go onto higher education.” Nedzu pats Izuku’s hand. “You like making dresses right?” The greenette pulls on Nedzu’s hand again. The pokemon shook his head sadly. “Or maybe he could finish off his year here and transfer to one more oriented in that field. Aizawa, this is me at my most sincere.” 

Nedzu looked him in the eyes. “The hero field is not the field for Izuku and Chip.”

Shouta looked down at his son. “The decision is between you two but I urge you to toil over my words.” “Thank you, Nedzu,” Shouta couldn’t bring himself to look up. Nedzu put his other paw over Izuku’s hand and gave a firm squeeze drawing the boy’s divided attention. “It gets better,” the pokemon promised. “It hurts right now and your head is probably really dizzy and spinning,”  _ Ash, so he has been through this after all,  _ “but it gets better. Hand in there, Izuku.” 

Nedzu slid his paws from Izuku’s hand. The boy pouted. Nedzu dropped to the floor. Smokey went and nudged the door open for him. “See you at school, Aizawa, Izuku, Chip.”

The door shut behind Principal Nedzu. Izuku pressed himself closer to Shouta. “Scare…” Shouta gave a watery sigh. “I know you are,” he dangles the end of his capture weapon in front of Izuku. “I know…”

____________________________

Nedzu stormed down the hospital halls. The few passerbys were quick to flee from his path. Oh how he  _ hated _ that. It had been decades since he was a lab rat, subjected to the torture behind closed doors of having your genes and cells meshed and fiddled with. In all these years he has never once forgotten it. Seeing the young human in that state brought back so many wretched memories. When he made use of his High Specs quirk to escape from that laboratory it felt like his body was being ripped in half. The kind nurses that found him were the only reason he didn’t turn his heightened intelligence against the human race for revenge. They had him drugged in a similar fashion Izuku is in though his was a bit quicker of a process. Izuku had obviously broken out before the full merging of cells so he didn’t have whatever his captives were using to finish the process and just left a ball of pain for them to heal. Nedzu was a finished product for the most part. The nurses nursed him back to health and showed him that not all humans are bad humans.

When he got back to the school and into his office, Nedzu pressed his forehead to his desk and let out a bedraggled sigh. He prays to whatever the heck is up there that those people who did that to Izuku and the ones that made him into what he was were no lesser than tortured and killed for their wrongdoings against Izuku, Chip, and Nedzu alike. 

____________________________

_ I shouldn’t have brought them in. Why is this a yearly thing? Why are they so eager? Haven’t they had enough to last them a lifetime?  _ Shouta stared at the five eager students in front of him.  _ I don’t have a reason to say no. Maybe I should see if Nedzu has an excuse. I really don’t want to talk to him right now after our last conversation.  _ Shouta let out a bedraggled sigh.

“Whyyyyy do you want to do a work study under a hero?” he asked.

“Togata-sempai was so manly!” Kirishima piped. Uraraka nodded. “And Hado-senpai too! I think she could really help me with my quirk, or the hero she is working under.” Asui nodded. “Correct, ribbit.” Shouta turned to Kaminari and Hitoshi. “And you two? Shinsou, aren’t you aiming for the underground field?” Hitoshi shrugged. “I am but more experience under the belt is always better than less.” Kaminari nodded sharply. “Right!”

Shouta leaned in. “And this isn’t because you feel guilty about Izuku?” Kaminari sweatdropped. “N- not at all!” Shouta leaned back into the cough in the teacher’s lounge where Shouta had been hiding away after school to avoid this very conversation.

So what is this conversation you may ask? Every year the top three students of the third year class of the heroes course are selected as ‘The Big Three.’ It is a really big deal at UA. Every hero course student strives to be one of them in their third year and a lot of hero agencies gun for those three to be sidekicks at their agency once the three graduate. Well, these three go to each of the first year hero classes to talk about the work study program that most Big Three students participate in. Well, most third years in general do. Or all. It’s required. Moving on! The work study program is basically being a sidekick at an agency while in your high school career but you aren’t being paid and it is for less time. Shouta  _ loathes  _ the Big Three coming in each year because it always inspires a student or two to do it and he can’t really say no without a plausible reason.

“Fine,” he sighs, “but only if you get the hero to say yes and sign off on it. I will have you know that many don’t say yes to first years.” The five cheered.

…

…

…

_ They all said yes…  _ Shouta looked down at the forms in front of him.  _ THEY ALL FREAKING SAID YES TO FIRST YEARS!!! _ Kirishima and Kaminari decided to hitch a ride with Amajiki, the poor shy soul having to handle two of the most rambunctious kids in his class. Amajiki work studies under Fatgum and his pokemon Hariyama. To be fair, Kaminari tried to get in with Togata under Nighteye and Reuniclus but the man swiftly turned Kaminari right around and out of the door of his agency. Uraraka and Asui went with Hado to Ryukyu, the dragon heroine. Hitoshi found himself with an underground hero after all. He went to Black Out who doesn’t really have an agency like most underground pro’s. How Hitoshi found the woman he will never know.

Shouta dragged his feet all the way to Izuku’s and Chip’s hospital room.  _ Why did they have to say yes? WhY dId ThEy HaVe To SaY yEs?!  _ He knocked and entered. Shouta’s eyes landed on Izuku.

_ Ah. All better. _

____________________________

_ Wait for it… _ James peered around the corner to the sound of pounding feet and a panting little girl.  _ Wait for it… _ He saw the little girl turn the corner and come his way.  _ NOW! _ James looked over his shoulder at Meowth and Jessie. He waved his hand.

Meowth started running. “EEE! That’s sharp!” Jessie chased him laughing jokily, the way that the Yakuza members have sadly become accustomed to in the week they had been here. The little girl, Eri, ran past into another hall, fear consuming her stance. A man, Setsuno, chasing her. Meowth crossed between the two. Jessie ran in just in time for her and Setsuno to crash.

“What the hell are you doing?!” the precept yelled.

James hid his smirk with a worried expression. Underneath he was cackling. Eri, the daughter of Overhaul. Overhaul was using her body and quirk, Rewind, to make the quirk erasing bullets. Only six years old… James and his comrades may be villains but even they wouldn’t go that far. Sadly, the position they were in didn’t really allow much moral leeway and they had to use the girl as their means of reaching the heroes. Overhaul always found her soon enough anyway.

_ Run hard and fast, Eri. _ Setsuno took off after her after promptly cursing them all out.  _ Run away and make this opening for our boss _ .

____________________________

Mirio patrolled around this part of Lumiose City often. Sir Night Eye trusted him greatly. In his white and yellow hero garb and his red cape flowing behind him, the blonde strolled down the stress of Lumiose City in search of those in need of help.

“It’s Lemillion!” “Hey, Lemillion!” “Work hard, hero!”

The people called out to him. They’ve seen him patrol a lot around here. I provided the public with a sense of security seeing a hero so thoroughly survey their land.

“NO!”

The cry of a little girl caught his attention. Mirio whipped around just in time to see a little girl, white hair, white gown, one horn, get dragged back into an alleyway by a man. She was covered in bandages and wounds. Mirio’s heart dropped. He knew that man. Sir Night Eye had been tracking that man for a long time now. The plague mask and citrus eyes were unmistakable. Mirio made a mad dash for the girl but by the time he reached the alleyway, she was gone. After a thorough investigation of it, Mirio set out back for the agency. He burst through the doors loudly proclaiming:

“I just had a run in with Overhaul!” And all activity in the office came to a screeching halt.

____________________________

_ Oh my goodness this was the worst time to say yes! _ Shouta stared once again at the five new work study students under his belt. The determination in their eyes, while great and all, made Shouta know they weren’t going to back down from this raid. 

Togata had a run in with Overhaul two days ago which confirmed a few of Sir Night Eyes’ suspicions in regards to the location the Yakuza may be located at and after that he set himself up to touch a man at the toy store because his quirk, Foresight, allows him to see a film roll of anyone he touches next few hours of life, and found out about the creation of the quirk erasing bullets and the exact location of the Yakuza. With that he immediately called for a gathering of heroes and hero agencies to plan a raid in five days on the Yakuza establishment.  _ OF COURSE _ Fatgum, Ryukyu, and Black Out  _ HAD TO BE THERE _ and now that Kirishima, Kaminari, Uraraka, Asui, and Hitoshi were all working under one of those three under contract they had to go as part of the agency. Well, maybe. Fatgum Ryukyu and Black Out were giving them the option in regards to what they have been through this year and the fact that they are  _ STILL FIRST YEARS _ to not fight in the raid.

Shouta sighed. “You five aren’t going to say no, are you?” Kaminari’s head snapped up. “How can we?! You heard what they were doing to that little girl!” Uraraka nodded. “That’s so wrong!” Asui bowed her head. “I never knew how big a thing child abuse was nowadays, ribbit…” The rest of them looked down. “It feels like it is everywhere…”

Oh yeah, they also have personal ties with their classmate who was a child abuse victim. Of course they would have strong emotions towards this.

“I want… to save her in time this time,” Hitoshi whispered. Everyone looked at him. The boy gripped his pants tightly, tears pricking at his eyes. “I knew Izuku since we were nine years old and I couldn’t do anything for him!” His classmates were stunned, not having seen this side of Hitoshi before. He took a shaky breath. “I- I know it can’t make up for my blindness to what Izuku was going through but i- if I could help this little girl…” Shouta put a hand on Hitoshi’s shoulder. He took a deep breath.

“Fine, I won’t object any further to you five going,” he decided. “But if you go you must follow every single order your hero gives you to the  _ T _ . Got it?”

“Yes, sensei!”

Shouta watched how over the next week the five trained harder than anyone with more determination than anyone. Their classmates questioned their sudden boot in morale and determination but the raid was confidential and they were forced to keep their mouths shut about the whole thing. Before he knew it, the day before the raid had come and Shouta had to deal with Izuku and Chip before he could go because he was recruited for it as well.

“We are going to have to put them under,” Doctor Suzuki stated as he escorted Shouta to Izuku’s and Chip’s hospital room. He didn’t have to ask why. With the smaller doses Izuku was beginning to remember things. It was just small flashes that Shouta would notice as he sat with the boy. Izuku would be messing with his scarf or with a child’s game Shouta downloaded on his phone when the boy would just stop, completely freeze up. The next time it happened his hand twitched. That is what alerted Shouta to the fact that Izuku’s memories were coming back. The worst part was that in this state where his mind is cloudy and impair it was basically a little kid that suddenly was being bombarded by all of these painful images and memories he couldn’t make much sense off but his natural, beaten-into-him reaction is to react with fear and aggression. For the past three days Shouta has been sleeping at the hospital because Izuku is getting increasingly antsy and aggressive towards others without him there. If he is there than Izuku is fine and ‘normal’ around others. Chip has begun to notice his trainer’s distress and it is spiking up his own anxiety as well so he practically is glued to Shouta’s side having already remembered everything since the day they got rescued.

“We can’t get them to put the mask on to put them under though,” Doctor Suzuki continued. “It’s not really legal to let you but it is obvious Midoriya has a strong connection with you so we were hoping that maybe you could coax them into putting it on?” Shouta nodded. “I’ll give it my best shot.” “Thank you. The mask is already draped over his bed. The tube attached to it leads to a machine. Just pressed the big green button on the machine and it should release the gas.” Shouta nodded.

* **knock knock knock** *

“Izuku, Chip, it’s Dad,” he announced. Shouta opened the door. Izuku was sitting up in bed donning Shouta’s bathrobe. He was messing with the belt on it.  _ Good. He seems fine right now. _ Chip… not so much. The little Eevee came bounding over. “Vee!” He wrapped his body around Shouta’s ankle, shivering in fear. “Shh…” Shouta knelt down and picked him up, “it’s okay, I’m here now.” The man crossed the room and sat on the edge of Izuku’s bed. The greenette looked up at him. After a second of remembering who he was, those rainbow eyes brightened significantly. “Dad!” he chirped. Shouta chuckled. He got under the blankets again. Chip found his permanent position curled around Shouta’s neck. Izuku leaned over onto Shouta just like always.

Shouta thinks he will miss Izuku like this when the boy is completely off of the medication.

“I got far!” Izuku cheered, showing Shouta the phone. The raven-haired man ruffled Izuku’s hair. “Good job, kid.” Izuku lifted his head smuggly before returning to the game, resting his head on Shouta’s chest. “So the doctor needs to do an examination,” Shouta lied. Well sort of. They do one about twice a week to tell where the cells are in the war between themselves to see how much lower they can put the doses at. It’s been going a lot faster in recent days. They gave it a week for Izuku to be able to come completely off of them. It just wasn’t the  _ current _ reason for the mask. “You know Doctor Suzuki, right?” Izuku nodded. “He is a good man, right?” Izuku shrugged. “He’s not bad man,” the boy stated.  _ Well that is better than nothing.  _ “Well he needs to do another check up so we have to put the mask back on again, alright?” Izuku pouted. “Nooooooo!” He put down the phone in exchange for holding onto Shouta. “You go when he puts mask on!” Oh how Shouta’s heart twisted at that. He pat Izuku’s head. “I got permission to stay this time because it will be a very fast check up.”

(*cough cough* the whole night and however long the raid lasts check up.)

Chip whimpered, curling tighter. “Vee…” Shouta reached up and pet the small pokemon. “I promise everything will be okay. You trust me, right?” Izuku raised an eyebrow. “Well,  _ duuuuh _ .” Shouta deadpanned.  _ Getting a bit sassy there, aren’t you, Izuku? _ “And I promise that it will be okay, okay?” … “Okay…” Shouta reached over and picked up the first of the to masks. There was a smaller one for Chip. “Chip, since it is so close to the end of this medicine they need you to go under too, okay?”  _ Okay, okay, okay, okay.  _ Shouta hated using ‘okay’ but the two fell back on it in their month of captivity.  _ After we had gotten so close to removing it too…  _ Chip gave his cheek a small nuzzle before letting it drop upon Shouta’s shoulder. The man slid the band over Chip’s head and placed the mask over the Eevee’s muzzle.

“Alrighty then. Izuku?” His son grumbled a bit, pressing his face into Shouta’s scarf. “Come on, it’s only for a little bit. I’ll be right here.” Fearful rainbow eyes glanced up at him. “Don’t wanna go under again.”

\-----

_ ‘I don’t want to go asleep again!’ Izuku’s telepathic cries screamed. _

\-----

Shouta frowned. He looked down at the boy’s chest. Shouta could just make out the scar peeking out from under the boy’s hospital gown. It was massive. The scar itself went from in the middle of Izuku’s chest down to the top of his belly button and then another went across it from just below the right peck to just below the left peck. It was probably how they fit whatever stone is in him now in there. They said that once he is fully off they will begin trying to remove it. 

“Izuku, look at me.” The teen lifted his head ever so slightly. Shouta picked up Izuku’s mask and carefully slid it on him, securing it with the strap. “I am right here” he promised. Shouta reached over to the machine the tubes were attached to and pressed the green button. He heard the sound of gas. Shouta turned back to his son. Tears filled Izuku’s eyes. “Scared,” he whined. “I know. I’m here.” He put one hand on Chip’s head and reached around with the other to bring Izuku closer. “Right here.” Neither Izuku’s nor Chip’s eyes left him until they closed and the gas put them to sleep.

Shouta sighed. He pulled Izuku closely, giving the boy a tight hug. “I’m sorry…”

Shouta laid Chip on Izuku’s lap and made for the door solemnly. It opened as he reached for it. Hizashi and Nemuri in their hero costumes and gear stood in the doorway. “What-” “We weren’t recruited for the raid,” Nemuri stated boldly, “so we will take your place here and watch over Izuku and Chip.” Shouta’s eyes widened. “Now don’t go getting all high and mighty,” hizashi winked. “We are here on orders from Nedzu. He’s getting anxious with the recent rising in action of the villains and wants at least one hero by their side at all times.”

Shouta nodded. “I know it is orders but thank you,” he gave a small bow. Hizashi patted his shoulder. “They mean just as much to us too, Sho. Now, get ready for the raid tomorrow. We won’t let anything happen to them.” Shouta nodded. He looked over his shoulder at his sleeping children.

“I’ll be back!”


	26. Movement in the Underground

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Yakuza Raid happens and Shigaraki wants his toy back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone?

“You three,” Jessie, James, and Meowth all stopped and turned to Overhaul as he stormed past, “you are about to prove your worth. Get up to the front.” They all stood up straight and saluted. “Yes sir, Overhaul sir!” They watched him pass. Waiting a few seconds longer, Jessie reached up and pressed the button on the microphone in her ear. “Heroes are here.”

They turned the corner and walked right through the warp gate already opening for them.

“Welcome baaaaack!” Toga waved, bouncing up to them. James lifted his nose high. “See, I told you we could do it. Shigaraki rolled his eyes. “You’ve missed preparation taking so long. We’re going.” Meowth jumped up and sat on a box. “What are we doing?” Shigaraki’s face split into a wicked grin. “Taking out the Meta Liberation Army and then after that,” he turned to them, “using them to get back our Nomu.”

“The hero brat?” Meowth asked.

Twice deadpanned at them. “No, the other Nomu the heroes stole- YES the hero brat!” Turns out, sarcasm works well with his bipolarity. 

____________________________

The forces set against the Yakuza were massive. With platoons of heroes and police alike, they marched up to the lodgings of the Eight Precepts of Death which just so happened to be a very large but also quaint old-Kalos(Japanese) styled house. Underneath it was the real quarry. There was a maze of underground tunnels and rooms and one of them held their target:

Eri. She is a six year old girl with the quirk to rewind living things back to a past time. Using this quirk and his own quirk, Overhaul has been breaking her apart and building her up again, taking bits and pieces of her and her cells to create bullets that can temporarily delete a person’s quirk. Rumor has it though that they have just finished the final product, a bullet that when hit with it permanently destroys one’s quirk effectively making them quirkless.

As always, they try the civil approach. One of the detectives rings the front door bell.

* **!!!BOOM!!!** *

A ginormous man smashed through the gate and blew away most of the starting police forces, quickly caught by some heroes. Eraserhead caught a couple as well as Froppy and Nejire-Chan using their quirks. The police forces began to freak out. “They weren’t supposed to know about this!” “It doesn’t matter,” Dragon Heroine Ryukyu stated. “My squad will hold him back! Get in there and rescue the girl!”

“Oh ho ho! You’ve got me riled up now!” the man swung at the heroes. Uravity got behind the plague-masked man and tapped his leg, nullifying his gravity. Froppy wrapped her tongue around his arm and threw him into the air. Nejire-Chan used her energy waves to blow him further away from the entrance. “Go now!” Ryukyu yelled. And that is just what they did. In the courtyard many of the police and smaller heroes were left behind to deal with pokemon and villains alike. Eraserhead ducked under a swinging arm. “Umbreon, dark pulse.” His pokemon let off the beam of dark energy at the ground, kicking up dust and letting them as well as many other heroes get into the Yakuza house. Sir Night Eye found and opened the secret passage. “Let’s try to stay together.”

Unfortunately, that would not be an option because before long the walls in the underground tunnels began to move.

____________________________

“We need to get you out of here, Chisaki,” Chronostasis urged him. Kai casually walked through the tunnels. “They won’t get far. Not with the pawns I have, all merged with their pokemon. Let us just grab Eri and get out of here.”

____________________________

Having to break through a couple of walls, the heroes continued their rapid advance through the tunnels. Sir Night Eye and Reuniclus came to a halt, the lanky man throwing out his arm. “Wait.” The tunnels before them began to move. Sir Night Eye cursed. “This must be Mimic! He’s moving the walls. Eraserhead, can you stop this?” The raven-haired man looked around wildly. “I can’t see him.” Night Eye nodded. “Then we must get through before he changes the path!” And thus the heroes charged forward.

* **RuMbLe** *

“Fatgum!” Those at the head of the pack turned around only to meet a wall. Eraserhead ran up to it. “Is everyone alright?!” Muffled but still there came the voice of Fatgum. “We are good! It’s Fatgum and Red Riot!! Keep going!” Though not the best of situations, they knew they had to.

* **RuMbLe** *

“No way!” They turned around again. A wall blocked them. “We are trapped!” Suneater cried. “Oh no we aren’t!” Lemillion rushed forward. Night Eye reached out. The blonde ignored him and let out his pokemon, Zoroark. “We don’t have time. Zoroark, stay with them!” Lemillion phased through the wall and disappeared into the labyrinth. “Lemill- AH!” The ground opened up beneath them and swallowed up the heroes whole.

“Well, well, well, look what Mimic dropped in for us.” All heads whipped around. Three men stood. One with something akin to a brown string bag over his head, one with a black plague mask over his mouth, and the last with just a plain white medical mask. Suneater grit his teeth. He stepped forward. “We don’t have time, like Lemillion said. I’ll handle these guys.” Brown bag laughed. “Don’t get too ahead of yourself now.” Chargebolt steps forward. “Like he said, we don’t have time.”

“Fine,” Sir Night Eye agreed. “Don’t die on us!” “You think you will get away?!” The medical masked man ran for them. Chargebolt caught him by the arm and the man let out a bloody scream as electricity pulsed through him. “Let’s go!” Night Eye led them further into the tunnels.

____________________________

Shouta didn’t like this. They had been separated far too many times now and the walls were still moving meaning that Mimic was still trying to separate them further. They could not risk losing more of their original squad. 

“It’s getting tighter,” Night Eye stated. “Mimic is getting frantic. Lock Rock.” The hero in question stepped forward and placed his hand on the wall. “Deadbolt.” The walls stopped moving. “We gotta bust through while we can! Pokemon to the front!” All of the pokemon readied their strongest moves. “Wait a second, I have a better idea,” Shouta stepped forward. Under his command, all of the pokemon of the heroes formed a circle around them facing the walls. “I can’t hold it much longer!” Lock Rock yelled. Shouta nodded. “Pokemon, on the count of three. One. Two THREE. FIRE!”

They all let loose their power in a massive * **BOOM** *. A yelled from somewhere nearby echoed after the initial explosion. Shouta’s head whipped around to it.  _ There! _ A tall, muscular man fell out of the wall. Shouta activated his quirk. “Mimic!” Night Eye rushed forward and knocked out the villain before he could get up again. “Go going, Eraserhead.” Shouta nodded. “Let’s go.” And that is what they did. 

Using the moves of the pokemon, they smashed through wall after wall until they burst into a clearing just in time to see Lemillion, third year student of UA Trainer’s Academy Mirio Togata, get impaled in the side with a sharp piece of concrete in a battlefield of spikes as he stood in front of Eri wrapped in his cape on the floor.

“Night Eye, get the girl!” Shouta ran forward, eyes flashing as he locked on Overhaul. The man yelled in shock as his quirk would not work. Meanwhile Zoroark ran to his trainer to get him out of harm's way. He ran for Overhaul. “Chrono!” Shouta’s eyes widened. A man on the floor with clock arrows for hair, shot out his hair. Pain spiked in Shouta’s shoulder as the bigger one stabbed him. Shouta’s body slowed down to a snail-moving rate. His feet faltered and he fell, chin hitting the ground painfully and forcing his eyes to close.  _ Dang it! _ The man’s Lickitung ran to grab him but Umbreon tackled it to the ground, the two engaging in battle. Absol ran up and propped Shouta up. Seviper subdued Chronostasis, not so kindly choking the man until he passed out. “I need to see Overhaul…” Shouta slowly said to Absol.

The man in question had gone on a rampage. The ground shook and trembled as he broke it apart and rebuilt it to his liking with his quirk now returned to him. Shouta couldn’t get a clear sight of Overhaul. Overhaul took out a singular pokeball. From it burst forth a giant Hydreigon. “Hydreigon,” the villain growled, “you would do anything for me, right?” Placing his hand on the dragon type pokemon, both of them burst only for a second later Overhaul to reappear larger, Hydreigon’s wings sprouting from his back and two large, clawed arms sprouting from either side.  _ I need to see… _

“GIVE HER BACK!” 

Overhaul charged with incredible speed at Lemillion and Night Eye who were protecting the girl when he went off course. Shouta’s vision turned to a green hue. He knew this hue. From the hole in the wall they broke out of, the woman in all black stood, Black Out. Black Out’s quirk allowed her to completely black out anyone’s vision within a certain vicinity for fifteen seconds and then a cooldown time. Anyone she wanted to keep their vision would with the green hue that of night vision goggles. Behind her stood Blank, aka Hitoshi, and Espurr. Shouta felt his body move as Espurr’s psychic drew him and all of the other heroes from the field. With expert ability, Espurr kept Shouta’s body facing Overhaul.

“YOU WON’T GET AWAY!”

“Five seconds!” Black Out shouted. Pokemon and heroes alike lined up, readying their most powerful moves. Overhaul lifted his hands, not knowing what else to do in his blinded state, and slammed them on the ground only for his quirk to not work. “NOW!” Black Out yelled. The forces of all of them combined turned into one super ray of power that collided into Overhaul with a massive-

* **!!!!!BOOM!!!!!** *

If Overhaul cried out in pain it was surely covered by the explosion. With the dust finally settled, Night Eye walked up to the crater it left and peered in. He looked over at the heroes and grinned. “Overhaul is down for the count.”

____________________________

With a total of zero deaths but a massive intake of injuries, the raid was a success. The worst injury of all wasn’t visible. Mirio Togata got shot with one of the quirk erasing bullets permanently erasing his quirk. No matter how hard he tried to use it he simply couldn’t. He was forced to take a leave of absence from the hero course. He was also one of those to suffer the most physical injuries as he was impaled in his right side and in his left leg and arm though he is expected to make a full recovery.

Amongst the wounded were mostly hero course students. Kirishima Eijiro suffered massive damage and broke a lot of bones and ribs. He would be out of commission for a few days. Kaminari Denki and Amajiki Tamaki were wounded in a fight against three humans who were merged with their pokemon by Overhaul’s quirk, something he attempted to power up by himself until Black Out disoriented him. Uraraka Ochaco, Hado Nejire, and Asui Tsuyu experience exhaustion with their energy drained by the villain at the front but ultimately were fine aside from a bruise or scratch here and there. 

At the end of the day, the objective was complete. Eri was safe.

As the heroes and police forces were celebrating and healing at the hospital, they were completely oblivious to the terror striking Couriway Town a few hours away. 

____________________________

**\----- At The Same Time As The Yakuza Raid -----**

____________________________

“Re-Destro!” Skeptic burst into the office of the Meta Liberation Army. Re-Destro sighed and looked up from his computer. “What do you need, Skeptic?” The long-banged man pointed out the window. “ _ They _ just appeared on my computer!” Re-Destro spun around in his swivel chair to look out his big window. An explosion somewhere in the city a few miles away an explosion went off. Re-Destro stood sharply.

On top of a house in the plume of the smoke stood none other than the League of Villains.

The League of Villains Re-Destro and the rest of the Meta Liberation Army had considered enemies. Their viewpoints just did not align. Re-Destro tapped his forehead, large with his receding hairline, before a grin spread on his face. “Do not worry, Skeptic. All of Couriway Town is under the Meta Liberation Army’s hold. Every hero and civilian here would fight tooth and nail for us. What can a group of ragtag villains do?

____________________________

A lot. They can do a freaking lot.

In the span of three hours that ‘group of ragtag villains’ wrecked havoc on Couriway Town. Shigaraki, Dabi, Jessie, James, Meowth, Toga, Twice, and Spinner caused mass destruction. Despite their best efforts, the civilians, the heroes, the Meta Liberation Army, everyone failed to put an end to their attack. The most that they could do was tear up poor little Toga from the inside out but even she wasn’t wounded unto death. In the end it was just Shirgaraki, his comrades, and Re-Destro in the middle of the wore torn town.

“Wh- what do you want, Shigaraki?” Re-Destro was on his knees, unable to even lift an arm. “I have a proposition for you, knight,” Shigaraki started. “We have a piece that was stolen from us that we need back.”

Re-Destro looked up. “If you have this much power, why don’t you just go get it yourself?” * **WHAM** * Re-Destro fell to his side as he was kicked across the face. “Don’t get all high and mighty now. All you have to do is listen.” Shigaraki crouched down. “Sure, maybe the piece by itself would not be so dangerous but those defending it are. That being said, the piece itself  _ is _ dangerous. I’ve long strived to end the hero society but I’ve also long strived to end you. I’ve known for a while now how you were planning to take down the League,” Shigaraki continued. “I don’t like that but your little group here has some worth so here is my proposition. You have two options.” Shigaraki held up one finger. “One, you and your army help us take down UA and retrieve our piece. We will finish off the hero society on a later date after I have undergone some medical work but for now we need our piece as soon as possible.”

Re-Destro narrowed his eyes. “Option two?”

Shigaraki smiled. “I kill you. What do you say?”

____________________________

“Well now we are at a dilemma,” Night Eye mused. “I understand your need to get back to the child you are guarding over at the hospital but we also need you here to watch over Eri. You are the only one with a quirk that can keep hers under wraps.” “Could he not just watch over them both at the same time?” Lock Rock asked. “We could transfer Eri to that hospital or him to this one.”

Shouta cringed. He remembers Midoriya Inha who they still have yet to try and incorporate into Izuku’s life and Izuku into her life. He remembers the way Izuku reacted to simply the prospect of Shouta even dating in fear of the man being taken away from him. “I don’t think that is such a good idea. Izuku isn’t good with other people. I fear their own personal traumas would spur to heighten the others.” “Would they have to meet?” Night Eye suggested.

“Actually, I think this could turn out quite nicely,” all heads turned to Principal Nedzu as he walked through the door. “Greetings everyone. Great job on the successful raid. My condolences to Mirio’s lost quirk.” “It could not be helped,” Night Eye sighed. “What could turn out nicely, sir?” Shouta averted his eyes. He was still on the edge around the pokemon principal. “Most of you do not know the current situation that the UA student you are talking about is in.”  _ Well that is one way to put it. _ “Actually, none of you do. Including you, Eraserhead. Might I draw your attention to Couriway Town? Who here has heard of the Meta Liberation Army?”

“Weren’t they an old group that strived for quirk freedom without regulations?” Lock Rock asked. “They never got very far, obviously.” Nedzu nodded. “That is correct though in recent times, muhc like the Yakuza, they have gotten on the rise again. This morning, at the same time as the Yakuza raid, Couriway Town which is occupied by mostly Meta Liberation Army members was attacked by the League of Villains and taken over.”

“WHAT?!” all three heroes shouted.

Nedzu held up a paw and they quieted down. “Sadly, yes. I am sure you will all be briefed on it at your respective agencies after this. It is suspected that the entire town is under the League’s thumb. Now, in regards to our UA student, the League has been targeting him and I feel that this may be the League preparing to attack once again so in response we are moving him to an underground safety bunker in a week.”

Shouta stood sharply from his chair. “He’s still under the medication, Nedzu.” Shouta struggled to keep calm. No one here knew the relationship between him and Izuku. Nedzu nodded. “I am aware. I visited the hospital after the news about the Couriway Town attack hit UA. Doctor Suzuki gives his regards, by the way. He also says that they did run a few tests after all and Izuku should be clear to come off of the medicine in a few days. That is why I said we are moving Izuku in a week.”

“Alright, that’s all fine and well and all,” Lock Rock waved them, “but what does any of this have to do with Eri?” “Of course,” Nedzu carried on. “With the recent rise in villain actions I worry for her safety as well. After what the League has pulled in prior times I would not put it past them to attempt something like kidnapping her as well. That being said, she too will be moved to the underground bunker.”

Shouta frowned. “Are you sure that is a good idea to keep them so close together?” Nedzu nodded. “I do think it will be fine. We can have a wall put up.” Lock Rock raised an eyebrow. “I’m confused. Why can’t they see each other?” Both Shouta and Nedzu sweatdropped. “There were some rather… unfortunate happenings with little girls in his life,” Nedzu says. “You make him sound like a child predator,” Shouta huffed. “Either way, I suppose this is a good solution,” Night Eye stated. “Principal Nedzu, I know with everything that has happened with Togata it is your choice on whether or not he graduates through the hero program but I would very much still like to have him at the agency if that is alright with you.”

Shouta sort of zoned them out in favor of looking out of the window.  _ Izuku’s being hunted again. How much time do we have before the next attack? _

“I urge you all to prepare your agencies for battle,” Nedzu states, capturing Shouta’s attention once more. “I have a feeling that it won’t be long before the League of Villain’s make use of their newly acquired assets.”  _ It’s like you knew what I was thinking _ , Shouta thinks sarcastically. Nedzu glances over at him and smirks. Shivers went down Shouta’s spine. “Well then, we will be taking our leave.”

Shouta left, following Nedzu. “Eraserhead, this is serious,” Nedzu’s tone is deathly serious. “The League is moving. I don’t know what fascination they have with Izuku and Chip but I can say this: until the League is finally taken in and forever gotten rid of from this world, Izuku and Chip will not be safe.” Shouta’s fists curl tightly. “So when you urged Night Eye and Lock Rock to prepare, it isn’t just for a League attack, is it? You are planning a raid yourself, aren’t you, Nedzu?” Nedzu hums. “I wonder.”

And that is all Shouta got out of him but it only heightened his worry and need to get back to Izuku and Chip.

As he was only minorly wounded, he was free to go. He was given a strict time schedule where he would have to split his time between Eri and Izuku as both would be highly reliant on his presence. Because of this, Shouta would not be teaching again until they were both under the bunker at UA and then he would be able to bring Izuku to class, especially since the boy would be completely off medication, which is a whole other issue, in a few days and be within range of Eri at all times.

“Eraserhead! It is good to see you alive!” Doctor Suzuki greeted him as the man entered the hospital waiting room where Shouta was waiting. “Fresh from the battlefield, are you?” Shouta pointed to his shoulder as he stood. “With the wounds to prove it.” He and Doctor Suzuki had grown to be more than mere acquaintances in the time Izuku had been here which is about a week under a month now. “Enough with that ‘Eraserhead’ stuff though. I’m off the clock.” Doctor Suzuki looked down at the briefcase in Shouta’s hand. “Yeah. Looks like it.” “It’s paperwork on the recent events I plan to do while I am here. Make the most of my time.”

Doctor Suzuki nods. “Smart. Shall we go?” Shouta follows the man down the corridors he knows so well now. “Well we ended up running actual tests anyway. I’m not sure if you want to hear this but the pokemon cells are winning out.” Shouta bit his tongue. “That being said, it is leveling out at more of a 30% human cells to 70% human-Eevee hybrid cells so most of him is still human. The battle will still be happening until it is 100% or nothing but the pain should be bearable. We will send him off with some simple medication to take every six hours until his body fully adjusts. As of now,” they stopped outside of Izuku’s hospital room, “he will be off of the medication that is causing the mental imparities in four days.”

Shouta nods. “Anything else?” “Nope!” Shouta bows deeply. “Thank you for watching over them.” Doctor Suzuki chuckles. “It is just my job. Call for me if you need me. He will be awake in about half an hour.”

Shouta entered the room. “Yo, Sho,” Hizashi waved. Shouta waved back. “Hey, you two.” Nemuri ran up and hugged him. “Good to see you alive!”

____________________________

“Do we really have enough time to prepare in a week?” Twice asked. “Of course we do!” he then contradicted himself.

“The doctor has been raising the levels of our Nomu for a month now,” Shigaraki grunted. “If they aren’t at least near high end by then we need to find a new Nomu creator.” He stormed off. “I have to go make sure those Meta NPC’s are ready.” “Do you need any help, Shiggy?” James asked. He glanced over his shoulder at him. “Actually, I was thinking each of you captains or something over a group of Meta’s.”

Jessie squealed. “Yes!” Shigaraki hummed. “Come with me. I’ll show them who is really running this game.”

____________________________

As it would turn out, Hizashi and Nemuri were on full time Izuku watch now, even when Shouta was there. Izuku and Chip were  _ not _ okay with him being gone so often but Nemuri and Hizashi had gotten close enough to them to keep them placated for the time being while he was going between them and Eri. Speaking of which…

“Hey, kid,” he crouched before the little girl. She cowered behind Mirio. Mirio, now missing his quirk, ahd a lot of free time on his hands and had been visiting Eri often. She had taken quite a liking to him and rightfully so. “It’s alright, Eri!” Mirio chirped. “This man is a hero too! He was there when we saved you too!” The raid was three days ago and she is understandably very afraid. Eri glanced up at Mirio. “Hero?” Shouta scratched the back of his head. “Yeah, I know, I don’t really look like one but I am. See? I even have a pokemon.” Shouta let out Umbreon. Eri let out a little “Eep!”

“Breon?” Umbreon stepped forward. Shouta found that it was always better to let his pokemon go first. They were cuter and more likeable than himself. Like with Izuku, Umbreon and Chip got close first and when Chip deemed Umbreon safe Izuku began to warm up to them. But Eri doesn’t have a pokemon. Of course, she bonded with one, she had the dragon element on her back, left shoulder and it was shaped like an Axew but the Axew was never found and the girl never spoke about it. One person asked and she immediately started to cry. The popular belief at the moment is that Overhaul killed it.

Umbreon walked right up and sat in front of Mirio. It let out a happy “Breon!” Eri peeked out from behind Mirio’s legs. Umbreon tilted his head innocently, blinking at her. She blinked back. 

_ She’s calmed down. _ “I am here to help you with your quirk,” Shouta said carefully. The girl flinched back. Mirio told them that while he was fighting Overhaul one-on-one the man called it a curse instead along with many other bad things that warped the girl’s belief of it. Sound familiar?  _ Dang villains gaslighting children. _ “I can temporarily erase them,” he continued and oh how he hated how her eyes seemed to light up at that. “But you don’t like hospitals do you?” She shook her head ever so slightly. Shouta nodded. “That’s fine. We are going to take you some place much nicer and much safer than these icky hospitals, alright?” Eri’s grip on Mirio’s pants got tighter. “Don’t worry. Mirio is coming too.” Shouta glanced up at the blonde to make sure that was actually true. “Yup!” Mirio piped. “I won’t leave your side!”

Shouta held out his hand. “Let’s go to a better place, okay?” Eri hesitated. She looked up at Mirio who just smiled at her. Bless his heart. After losing so much he can still smile like that even if the bags under his eyes tell stories of the past few flights spent in tears. The white-haired girl reached out her hand and carefully placed it in Shouta’s. He rubbed the back of it with his thumb and gave the warmest smile someone like him could create. “You will be safe with me. I promise.”

It took a bit more coaxing from Mirion but they surely got Eri into the car and drove away to UA. It was sad to see the amazement in Eri’s eyes at seeing the world for the first time since she was born. Even if she never smiled, which also hurt, her eyes took in everything as they drove. He was sad that she would be brought back underground for protection. “This is UA Trainer’s Academy, Eri!” Mirio exclaimed. “It’s where I go to school and train to be a hero!” Eri looked up at him. “Y- you trained to be?” He nodded. “Yup!” Shouta drove into the small forest area on UA’s grounds and scanned his ID at a random pole. The ground shook and a rectangle of area lifted from the ground, dirt falling off a bit. Shouta pressed on the gas again. A small ramp down took them inside and to the emergency bunker under UA. Behind them the patch of earth fell again like there was nothing even there in the forest. 

Contrary to what most would think, the bunker was well furbished. It had a small parking area but beyond that was actually tatami mats that led into a large sitting area. There typically wasn’t much down here as they couldn’t have anything to do with the internet or technology on the most part aside from the lights but it would seem Nedzu had planned for their arrival. There was a long curtain in the back. Shouta got out of the car. “Lookie here. We are in a super duper safe space.” He mentally cringed at his own verbiage. Was it because it wasn’t Izuku?

Mirio led Eri by the hand. They crossed the expansive area. Shouta peeked behind the curtain. There was a futon on the ground with a dark blue blanket and some pillows. On the floor were some books and even some sketch books and a small sewing kit. To the left was another curtain. Shouta figures he knows what this is. He closed the curtain and moved a bit down, pulling back the other side. Yup. On this side there was another futon but with pink blankets and pillows and some girls toys and stuffed animals as well as some children’s books. This was Eri’s side. Shouta is a bit skeptical of only having a curtain between them but he is sure Nedzu has a reason. Still, Shouta would discuss this before bringing Izuku and Chip in a few days.

Shouta held out the curtain for them. “This is a place where no bad guys can reach you,” he stated to Eri. “Right now there are some bad guys chasing another kid that is going to be in here soon so we have to keep you both down here to keep you both safe.” Mirio led her in. He flopped down on the futon and pat next to him. “It’s so fluffy, Eri! Come feel!” And she did, albeit hesitantly. 

Shouta crouched by them. “I’ll be down here at most times in a few days but for the next three I will be gone periodically. At those times Mirio will be down here, alright?” Eri nodded. Shouta smiled at her. “You are so brave. I know it is scary right now but it will get better.”

Never in a million years did Shouta think he would be surrounded by and caring for a bunch of traumatized children but here he was. He supposed it isn’t too bad. It’s sad, sure, but Shouta had felt something change in him as time went on. He thinks that even though no child should have had to go through what Izuku and Eri did, their experiences helped him in their own way. 

About two hours later with no quirk outbursts from Eri Shouta left. Another hero took his place watching guard over the girl and Mirio who decided to stay until she fell asleep. Shouta looked at the night sky as he drove to the hospital. Back and forth and back and forth between these two. It would be rough but he was willing to do it.

* **knock knock knock** *

“Izuku, Chip, It’s-”

* **CRASH** * “Ah! Izuku!” Nemuri’s voice. Shouta threw open the door only to be tackled by Izuku. He stumbled back, hitting the wall of the other side of the hallway. Shouta looked down at the boy’s arm. Blood slowly dripped from his joint. He ripped out the IV with that stunt. Shouta swallowed a sigh. He rested a hand on Izuku’s head. The boy glanced up.

“Ah, u- um,” Izuku averted his eyes, “w- welcome back.” Shouta met eyes with Nemuri and Hizashi watching from inside the hospital room. “Yeah. I’m back.”

And so were Izuku’s memories. Shouta put the IV back in the boy’s arm with much practice, something most heroes learned at some point whether they wanted to or not on the battlefield if something went wrong. Izuku would get distracted sometimes and dazed still but for the most part, everything was back to the worse side of normal. Izuku and Chip did not leave his side and they did not let him leave their side. They held onto either of his arms tightly, trying to come off normal but unable to.

The next day, after a rough time getting away from the hospital, Shouta went to talk with Nedzu. 

“On the contrary, I think it would be good for Izuku and Eri to see each other and get to know each other,” Nedzu stated. “It will also be good for you, Aizawa. For one, traumatized children know how to react to panic attacks and the like the correct way. For you, as the parental figure of a severely traumatized child, if Izuku reacts to Eri’s own panics in a way of helping her calm down, you will also be able to see how he would like to be calmed down as well.”

Shouta narrowed his eyes. “That makes no sense.”

“Have you heard of the five love languages, Aizawa?” Nedzu asked. He nodded. “Well,” Nedzu continued, “a wise man once said that one’s love language is how they are shown love, not how they show it. If your love language is gift giving then you feel loved when given gifts. You will habitually want to give gifts to your partner to make them feel loved but if that is not their love language then it will fail to come with the same results as what you felt when you received a gift. Similarly, by experiencing how Izuku reacts to Eri, you will see his metaphorical love language, or let us say his calm language. What treatment makes him calm. Because he doesn’t know Eri at first he will use his own love language as all do in relationships until they find out what their partner’s is. And when he shows love to her she will show it back and then show him her love language by trying to calm her down. It will be a trade off of information and there you will find how to calm them both down and begin to start working both on Izuku’s and her healing and also Eri’s quirk control.”

Shouta mulled on that. That and…

\-----

_ ‘At some point Izuku is going to have to break out of this dependence he has on you, Aizawa, and this fear he has of others getting close to you. It will only hurt him and yourself. Obviously now is not the time but at some point Izuku and Chip are going to have to stand on their own in life. You won’t be around forever. Especially not in the hero field where death lurks around every corner.’ _

\-----

He made his way into the underground bunker where Shouta spent another few hours. He showed off his quirk to Eri and how it worked using Umbreon which made her a bit more comfortable with him. He spent a lot of time reading children’s stories that while most had grown up on, she never heard of in her life. He made note that Eri really likes apples and promised to bring some next time and leave some in the refrigerator. There was a storage system for food down here though it wasn’t really that full as there were only two residents down here. Or would be once Izuku came.

“Eri,” he closed the book. The girl looked up at him from messing with the hair of the doll she was messing with. She didn’t seem to understand what to do with the doll but she liked it. “In a few days I am bringing that other kid I told you about. The one being chased.” She tilted her head. “Hibiku?” Shouta shook his head. “Izuku. Izuku and his pokemon Chip. It’s an Eevee. He is probably going to be just as scared of you as you are going to be of him.”

“D- did bad people h- hu- hurt him too?” Eri asked. Shouta nodded. “Yes, for many, many years. But he is coming here to be safe just like you and to heal just like you.” Shouta pointed to the curtain dividing Eri’s and Izuku’s areas. “Izuku and his pokemon will be on the other side of that curtain. I just thought I should let you know. I would hate to scare you.” Eri furrowed her eyebrows like she couldn’t process someone caring about how she feels on matters.

Shouta checked his watch. “Speaking of which, I have to go see him now. Will you be alright alone?” Eri nodded. “Alright but just in case,” Shouta let out Umbreon. The girl seems to like him. “Umbreon will be here with you.” He watched as Umbreon laid by Eri and placed his head in her lap. Pokemon were truly a blessing. They were so good with little children being cute and all. How did Shouta of all people who apparently has the smile of a psychopath get to be someone surrounded by children?

_ Izuku should have come off his medicine completely today _ , Shouta thought worriedly as he drove to the hospital. He expected to be tackled again by the boy but instead… nothing happened when he knocked. “Come on in, Shouta,” Hizashi shouted. Shouta opened the door and peered in. His heart dropped when he saw Izuku and Chip on the bed with breathing masks over their mouths and noses. “What happened?!” Shouta ran to their side. Nemuri looked up tiredly from her position guarding by the window.

“Izuku came off of the medication, couldn’t handle being away from you, saw us as villains, was sent into a panic that sent Chip into a panic that led to them almost evolving that almost led to a hospital-wide power outage,” Nemuri stated bluntly. “Did I miss anything?” she looked at Hizashi. The blonde shakes his head. “Nope, that about covers it!” Shouta cursed. “That being said,” Nemuri continued, “Nedzu pushed Izuku’s date to move to the bunker tomorrow.”

The raven-haired man blanched. “But I just told Eri that it would be a few days!” “Shouta,” Hizashi sighed, “these two can’t function without you. It is either this or keeping him under again and keeping him under will only do more harm than good. It was already unhealthy to be subjected to such high doses of pain medication for such a long time. They  _ need _ you Shouta.” Shouta cursed. “I swear when I get my hands on those villains…” He stormed over to Izuku and Chip and carefully removed their masks. “I’ll kill them. I’ll kill all of those villains for doing this to my sons!” Hizashi’s hand found his shoulder. Shouta sat on the edge of the bed, Izuku’s hand in his. He held it close to his chest as tears streamed down his face. “I w- will. Th- they don’t deserve this! E- Eri didn’t deserve this either!”

“Dad…?” Shouta’s head snapped up. His black eyes met Izuku’s rainbow. Oh how he scarcely remembered the days they were a beautiful viridian.  _ I swear, _ Shouta lurched forward and took his son in his arms.  _ I swear I will bring justice to those that did this to you! _

____________________________

“All groups in position,” Kurogiri stated behind him.

Tomura hummed. Currently in almost every corner of Lumiose City hid one of his squads each run by one of his knights. They all consisted of Meta Liberation Army idiots who were too scared to stand up to them after they got trashed by the League not but a week ago. They didn’t hurt them too bad, knowing that they would be needed so soon but it was enough to make them all pee their pants. Tomura also commanded Re-Destro who commanded them into battle so their loyalty to that man worked well in Tomura’s favor.

He, Kurogiri, and Darkrai all stood atop a high rise just outside of Lumiose City Emergency Care Hospital because if their information from Giran was correct, which it always was, their little escapee Nomu would be coming out of that building any moment now.

Those heroes didn’t know what they held when they held that brat. They didn’t know half of the things put into him. Tomura needed him back before all of the cells awakened and if he was getting released from the hospital then that very well may be the case.

“Tomura,” Kurogiri warned. Tomura put the binoculars to his face.  _ Bingo _ . “Darkrai,” Tomura snapped his fingers. He pointed at the vehicle the brat and that guardian NPC that was always with him were getting into. Oh and would you lookie there! They brought two other guardians along! Tomura scowled. “Blow that up.”

____________________________

Izuku didn’t like this. He could barely walk. His legs felt like jello. Every person he passed felt like they were just waiting for the perfect moment to strike. Every person but the three around him. Yamada and Nemuri he supposes are  _ fine _ . Izuku looks up at Dad. Chip is curled up around Izuku’s own neck, looking at the man too.

Izuku doesn’t remember too much but he feels like he has been in this hospital for a long, long time. He doesn’t like it. He wants out. It reminds him of the lab. Izuku’s hand twitches. He clutches at his shirt, soft blue t-shirt brought from home. Under it lays the scar. They cut into him. They tore him apart and made him into their weird creature. Izuku’s body doesn’t feel like his anymore. It hurts. All of his bones and joints ache. He wants it to stop! Dad gently pats his head. It’s like a cut through the storm. Dad is safe. Dad is good. Dad is okay. “We are going somewhere safe, Izuku, Chip,” he promises and they believe him. Because it’s Dad. Dad never lies. Dad is the only safe thing in this world.

Dad helps them into a car with tinted windows. _Is he not getting in?! Where are you going! Come in! Don’t leave me-_ _Ah, he’s getting in._ Dad slides in next to Izuku. Yamada gets in on the driver's side. Nemuri slides into the seat next to Izuku. She smiles down at him. “Glad to finally be out, kiddo?” The greenette hums. He leans over against Dad. Yamada pulls away from the hospital.

“Izuk-” * **_SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEE-!_ ** _ * _

Everyone is thrown out of their seats as Yamada suddenly breaks. Izuku sees the fire before it hits the car. It’s always fire, huh? * **!BOOM!** * He doesn’t even have time to be afraid as the car flies into the air.  _ What’s happening? Dad? DAD?!  _ Arms wrap around him and Chip, one around Izuku’s waist and another around his head. The sound of glass shattering hits his ears as he and Dad are thrown out of the window towards a telephone pole. Dad;s head hits it first with a resounding-

* **_C / R / A / C / K_ ** *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for such a short chapter! I wanted a good ending to it that lead into the next arc and so it kind of just ended, ya know? Sorryyyyy!


	27. Deus ex Machina

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku goes on a rampage in lue of Shouta being injured and the villains attack.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone feeling today?

“Ugh!” Madame Olympia stumbled back, holding her head. Her psychic students rushed to her. “Madame Olympia! Is it another vision? What do you see?!”

“The peril,” she panted. “The great peril from my past visions! The fire… it’s all consuming!” Her head spun with the force of the vision. Rainbow eyes flashed in her mind. The cries of a boy wracked through her head. It was the boy from before, the student she took on for internships. The hope she saw for Kalos before in him was waning! With a gasp, she was shaken from the visions. Taking a few seconds to orient herself, Madame Olympia addressed her students.

“We must head to Lumiose City! The beacon is in danger!”

____________________________

* **SLAM** *

Mirai’s head shot up. Bubble Girl stood in the doorway to his office panting. She looked up, the look in her eyes screaming of anything but happy.

“Sir! The League of Villain’s are attacking Lumiose!” He dropped his pen. “And there’s a lot more than nine of them!”

____________________________

“FATGUM!!!”

“I know!” The large hero in question ran out of his office. “Contact UA! Villains are laying siege to the city!”

____________________________

“The school festival is coming up.”

All heads in Class 1-A turned to Iida who was up at the front of the class. He became the Class president at the start of the year, just barely winning out over Izuku. A lot of students, the more rowdy ones, really liked Izuku’s confidence and spunk as well as the stunt he pulled to protect Uraraka during the battle training at the start of the year and thus voted for him but Iida pulled through. “We need to decide what to do,” the stern boy continued. He picked up a piece of chalk. “Any suggestions I will put up on the chalkboard and we will come to a group consensus democracy style.”

Immediately hands began shooting up. “We should do a fighting ring!” “Shouldn’t we be focusing more on the provisional hero license exam in a couple of weeks?” “Stop being a party pooper.” “How about a maid cafe?” “I’m just saying that it’s important.” “So is this! We should put on a play!”

Hitoshi sighed and leaned back in his chair. “We could make people pay to charge their devices using Kaminari,” Jirou joked. “Ha! Make Dunce Face actually useful for once,” Bakugou piped. “Hey!” Hitoshi rolled his eyes. He looked out of the window.  _ Shouta should be getting to the hospital by now. I wonder if Izuku will still attend class in the bunker? _ Hitoshi wasn’t really one for school festivals. In his previous schools his classmates never really included him and if they did it was as a joke.

\-----

_ ‘We could pay people to punch the heck out of Shinsou.’ _

_ ‘Yeah! Who wouldn’t want to beat up a villain!’ _

_ ‘We could be real life heroes!’ _

_ ‘Now, now,’ the teacher didn’t even try to tell them to stop calling him that, ‘we don’t want anyone getting hurt. The school can’t afford the insurance.’ Cause  _ that _ is the reason why not to do that. _

\-----

He closed his eyes and let the class ramble. Hitoshi had a feeling this would go into the next day. Homeroom wasn’t really that long.

* **buzz** * Hitoshi pulled his phone from his pocket.

* **buzz** * * **ding** * * **buzz** * * **buzz** * Kaminari, Kirishima, Asui, and Uraraka all pulled out theirs as well.

…

…

…

The five all stood up sharply. “Woah, what’s up with you guys?” Jirou huffed. Hitoshi didn’t reply. Instead, being the closest to the door, he lead the way out, the others following. Iida shouted at them from behind but they were in too much of a rush. “You got the text, right?” Uraraka hurriedly whispered. They all nodded sharply.

  
  


**Black Out** :

Lumiose City is under attack. We need all hands on deck. Get in your costume and to the agency ASAP.

  
  


The others had something similar from their own respective agencies. “Hold up!” Snipe-sensei came running for them from down the hall. “Snipe!” Kaminari and the others ran to meet him. “You youngins’ are work study students, ain’t cha?” the man questioned. “Yes, sir,” Hitoshi responded for the lot of them. “Can’t help it if you’ve been called by yer agencies and seein’ as yer all out of class like this runnin’ you have. Thats why,” he snapped his fingers and his pokemon, Staraptor, came flying from around the corner. In its beak and talons were the costume cases of the students. They each took theirs. “You stay safe out there, youngins’.” “Thank you, sensei!”

_ This isn’t good. This isn’t good! _ They went to the bathrooms instead of the dressing rooms, that would waste too much time. Suddenly, the way Shouta taught them to speed change made a whole lot more sense. He yanked on his black military cargo pants.  _ Not good!  _ He knows what this is about and when he looked up and saw Kaminari and Kirishima, he knew they did too. Izuku is out there and even if he was with Present Mic, Midnight, and Shouta, it was more than likely he was the target. Hitoshi had confidence in his teachers but if Black Out is calling than this is more than just a small scale attack for a UA student. It’s-

* **BOOM** *

The five stopped as they rushed out of UA in their costumes. The janitor would find empty cases and discarded clothing all over the woman’s and men’s bathroom floors. They looked into the distance where smoke was rising. Hitoshi cursed. He looked back at UA. He could see in the windows his classmates running on the higher floors. They were recruited too. The work study students just got the first call. “You guys!” They looked forward. Amajiki-senpai and Hado-senpai ran to them from further up the path. Both were wearing their costumes. “Let’s go! Our agencies need us!” Hitoshi grit his teeth.  _ If they lay a single finger on Izuku and Chip again I swear I’ll brainwash them and make those villains walk straight off a cliff. _ “Right!”

_ We’re coming, Izuku! _

____________________________

His ears rang. His head throbbed. The world spun around him. Izuku felt sick. Upon shaky arms he pushed himself up to a sitting position. Around him, Lumiose City seemed to spin. Rainbow eyes landed on a man clad in all black, unconscious next to a telephone pole.

\-----

_ It builds up over time. _

\-----

“D- Dad?” Izuku crawls over to the man. He tries not to notice the blood slowly pooling from his father’s head. Chip drags himself over. He nudges Dad’s arm but it falls limp. “Vee?”

\-----

_ Little things pressing at the back of the mind. _

\-----

Distantly Izuku hears the creaky door from a turned over car, charred and burned, open. A man with long blonde hair drops out. A chuckle escapes Izuku’s lips. “Dad, i- it’s time to wake up.” His hand twitches.

\-----

_ Days, weeks, months, years. _

\-----

A woman comes to him. “Izuku, Chip, we have to move!” she shouts but ‘Izuku’ and ‘Chip’ aren’t listening. A puff of smoke exits Izuku’s mouth. “Dad. Wake up.” He shakes his father harder.

\-----

_ Little by little until- _

\-----

“Well, well, well!” a scratchy voice, unfamiliar, coos. A bit down the wrecked road strolls a man with hands all over his body. “You’ve caused us a lot of trouble Nomu.” Izuku’s and Chip’s eyes twitch. Something dark swirls in their chests. “Shigaraki,” the blonde man, Yamada, stands in front of them, “why are you targeting these two?” Izuku takes his father’s hand and moves it to rest upon his head, just like Dad did when he was AwAkE. “I’m h- here.” Shigaraki sighs. “Darkrai.”

“Izuku! Chip!” They are tackled to the side as a wave of fire rushes towards them, the man grabbing Dad’s arm and fleeing. He can’t breathe. He can’t think. He just- “You could have saved him if you hadn’t had run away,” Izuku’s head lulls to meet the villain. 

_ It’s you…  _ He doesn’t see Shiigaraki, only a man with curly black hair and black eyes.  _ It’s always YOU. _ Nemuri jumps back. “They’re burning up!” Rage boils in his chest.  _ IT’S ALWAYS YOU! _ Yamada grabs her arm. “Get back! They’re going to-” “Darkrai.”

Izuku’s and Chip’s minds shut off.

\-----

_ Until the mind finally _

**_B̶̯͇̹̝͔̮̒̌R̶̡̛͚͉̳̪͚̠̜̲̱͔̣̈́̊̆̓̍͒̒͘͝È̴̲̏͊̔̈̋͜͝Ạ̵̜̣̺̼̫̠̼͚̺̬̓̅K̸̨̳̼͂̔̆̇͌̈́̃̌̾̎͆͑́S̶̱̗̗͍̰̰̯͉͔̼̪͂̏̾͘̚̚͜͝_ **

_ ̴̛̜̜̊̉̒̊̿̑̄̔̕͘ͅ _

____________________________

“There’s too many of them!” Hitoshi yelled above the roar of the battle. He was yanked back by Espurr’s psychic just before the thin beam of light could hit him. Hitoshi looked up, sliding back onto his feet. A bald man with sharp eyes held up his hand towards him, fingertips glowing. Hitoshi’s eyes widened. He jumped back further when small beams shot from them.

Not fast enough.

A beam of light pierced through his clothing. One went through his left shoulder and another through his right wrist. The others went around him. Like a mini explosion went off in his body, Hitoshi fell to his knees, clutching his shoulder. “Blank!” Black Out cried out. He grit his teeth. The villain prepared another attack. “Purrloin,” Hitoshi hissed. The small cat pokemon came out from between the legs of a Luxio and slid in front of her fallen trainer. With a cry, Purrloin used Protect, a clear shield forming in front of them. Hitoshi instinctively put his hands up to protect himself. The light beams couldn’t penetrate the protective barrier. “Luxio!”

Hitoshi’s head whipped up to the cry of an enemy pokemon. The electric dog jumped over the shield and straight for Hitoshi.  _ No, no, no, no, NO! _ Hitoshi lifted his arms and caught the pokemon by the neck and arm. Electricity coursed through his body. Hitoshi cried out in pain but refused to let go. This is  _ real _ war! This is life or death! The two opposing forces rolled over and over until Hitoshi finally landed a good kick to the Luxio’s stomach sending the pokemon flying. It was up in a second though, much faster than the already wounded Hitoshi. Fear sparked in his violet eyes.  _ Please… Please!  _ Suddenly, the light green hue of Black Out’s quirk covered his vision. Luxio jumped right over his head.

The villains nearby all shouted in anger as their vision was cut out. They began to lash out randomly. Hitoshi snuck over to the light man and pulled on his pant leg. “ _ Mister? _ ” he said in a little girl voice using his voice changer. The man froze and looked down in his general direction. “A kid?! What are yo-” Hitoshi felt the mindwaves connect and he took hold of the villains.

The green hue left his eyes and the villain forces that had previously been blinded and slightly pushed back regained their vision. Hitoshi smirked, pushing himself to his feet. “Do me a favor and use your quirk on that Luxio.” When the man did, Hitoshi came up with a new idea. “Purrloin! Espurr! Protect me and this man! Whatever you do, don’t let him get hit!” His pokemon ran to protect them. A wicked grin split Hitoshi’s face.

_ Perfect. Now we got ourselves a light cannon. _

That became his strategy and Black Out noticed. She had a ten minute cooldown time before she could use her quirk again but every time she did, Hitoshi went and found another villain, making sure they all had distinctive traits to call them by. At five though, he had to stop. His head was starting to hurt. When the ‘lights’ came back on again he had three men and two women standing around him.

“Baldy, shoot. Shorty, slow down that person. Blue eye, vibrations to your right.”

Hitoshi commanded himself a small army. It wasn’t for long. At some point the opposing forces also noticed their comrades were being used against them and began to target them. Espurr and Purrloin couldn’t hold them off alone. “Baldy,” Hitoshi commanded as the forces got close, “turn around and fire at the nearest person’s head.” Hitoshi ducked just as the beams of light went over him and hit one of Hitoshi’s dummies through the head. He tried not to think about what it did to the person’s brain. After all, HItposhi’s left arm and right hand and wrist had gone numb by now. The one hit dropped to the ground instantly. Still, he commanded the man to do that to all the others before they could be woken up by their comrades. Hitoshi slunk away into the fray before he got hit himself to do it again.

____________________________

“10,000 WATTS!” Denki threw out his arms towards the hoard of villains surrounding him. He made sure to be at the edge of the crowd so as not to hurt the heroes. Kirishima was off slamming through people. He was getting tired. He could feel his quirk making him short circuit

\-----

_ ‘This is great!’ Izuku cheered as he and Denki rode through the forest on Smokey’s back. The greenette whipped around to him. ‘You need to do this with Blitzle when he evolves. We’ll have a race!’ _

\-----

Denki grit his teeth.  _ Blitzle is still a bit small but, _ another shard of metal flew past his face, slicing Denki’s cheek,  _ times are dire! _ “Blitzle!” he called out for his pokemon. It took a second but soon Blitzle busted through the people and ran up to him. Denki didn’t turn to him, just yell over the crowd. “Can I ride you?! Can you handle my weight?!” Blitzle reared his head. Denki smirked. “Alright, Helioptile, return!” He returned his other pokemon to his ball. “Blitzle,” Denki turned and swung himself onto the small pony pokemon’s back. Blitzle seemed to falter a bit. “Wild Charge! Barrel through them!” “Blitz!” At the same time Blitzle lit up with electricity, so did Denki. Blitzle stomped at the ground. The villains before them turned and looked. A few paled. “Scatter!” “BLITZLE!” In a flash of lightning, Blitzle plowed through the mass of villains sending waves of electricity off from him and off of Denki.

_ I was Izuku’s buddy, _ Denki fought to keep his brain from short circuiting.  _ It’s my fault this is all happening! _ He grabbed Helioptile’s pokeball.  _ It’s my fault! _ Denki pressed his forehead to it. “You better come back to me alive after all of this, buddy,” he whispered. Denki pulled his arm back and threw the pokeball high into the sky. “THUNDER WAVE, HELIOPTILE!” Out from the ball burst forth his pokemon, ears fanning open. “Helioptile!” Blinding waves of electricity fanned out over the crowd, paralyzing all of the people it hit. Tears evaporated from the heat of the electricity on him as Denki watched Helioptile fall into the crowd and he and Blitzle rode away. “You better come back!”

____________________________

“Red Riot!” Fatgum yelled to Eijiro. The red haired boy ducked under a punch and landed one of his own in the gut of the woman he was fighting.  _ Punching a girl is so not manly! _ Eijiro lifted his head and turned over to Fatgum. The man pointed a bit further off. “Chargebolt has made an opening for you!” Eijiro looked over. In the distance, there was a flash of light streaming through the crowd, sparks bursting from it. A wicked grin split his face. He looked around. “Creati!”

Half of the Class of 1-B had joined their squad. The black haired girl looked over at him. “I need a human-sized cannon!” She paled. Eijiro grinned. “Don’t worry, nothing breaks me!” It took a hot minute but in that time Helioptile had paralyzed a massive group of villains to the ground. “It’s ready!” Creati yelled. Eijiro ran over and jumped right into the barrel. “Boldore, follow after me with Bulldoze. Creati, light her up!” Eijiro hardened his entire body. He held his breath.

…

…

…

* **!BOOM!** *

Eijiro was shot out of the cannon as a human missile right at the paralyzed mass of people. “YeeeeHAW!” The unsuspecting villains could do nothing as he smashed through them and hot on his tail Boldore came plowing after him.  _ Oh suck! How do I stop?! _ Eijiro curled his body into a ball and when the ground came at him he left a nice sized crater in the ground. Behind Boldore was a line of torn up ground. Eijiro groaned, pushing himself up. “That hurt a lot more than I thought it would.” He looked down at his pants and boots. His boots had been completely burned to bits and his pants were now basically just shorts with charred ends. His whole body was covered in ash and gunpowder. 

Sandile burrowed up from under the ground and came up beside them. A few not hit by the bullet known as Red Riot began to get up, body tense with lingering Electricity. “Hilio!” Kaminari’s Helioptile ran up to them. “Awwww yeah!” Eijiro got into a fighting stance. “Let’s take them all down before they can gain mobility again!”

____________________________

Nemuri scrambles back as a white orb of light forms at Izuku’s mouth and one at Chip’s. “Get Back!” Hizashi holds Shouta in one arm and grabs Nemuri’s arm with his free hand. He yanks her away. “They’re going to-”

“Darkrai,” Shigaraki commands. A mythical pokemon from legends said to haunt the dreams of those who sleep. Befitting of one such as Shigaraki. The dark levitating creature lets out a beam of dark matter energy. Nemuri reaches out for Izuku. The greenette takes a step forward, ground cracking underfoot. With a battle cry that of a warrior, Izuku and Chip throw out that orb of power. Together they combine and meet the dark matter coming at them with a-

* **!!!BOOM!!!** *

“Ah!” Nemuri and Hizashi are thrown off their feet from the shockwave. It doesn’t stop there. The light cuts through the darkness, tearing through the city streets, a barreling force towards Shigaraki and Darkrai. Windows shatter, concrete and dirt are thrown up, water lines burst into wells in the sky. Hizashi wraps his arms around her and Shouta to try and protect them. When the shaking finally stops, Nemuri dares to open one eye. She gasps in shock.

There she, Hizashi, and Shouta all lay on the ground behind Izuku and Chip and in front of those two no longer lies the road. No, there is a giant line of torn up earth dug deep into the ground. It must have extended at least a block or two. At the end there was Darkrai, arms up to protect itself and its trainer, Shigaraki, who was behind it, holding onto the creature. Steam rose all around them.

Nemuri covers her mouth in horror at the two standing in front of her. She can’t recognize them any longer.

Izuku’s unruly green hair has grown in white, long and straight though it floats behind him by the power he is emitting in waves. His eyes, oh his eyes… they are not green, they are not rainbow. They are just two angry red orbs, not even with irises. Upon his forehead are three red pearls, one large one in the middle and a small one on either side. Inside them swirl a dark gas-like substance, the manifestation of Izuku’s trapped anger. His nails have all grown into long, sharp claws and his canine teeth into fangs. Beside him is Chip but is it really? He is larger than when he usually evolves. His fur is a white long coat. His ears are long like an Espeon’s but the fur around his neck is long like a Flareon’s. His tail floats behind him as though an Umbreon’s. Just like Izuku’s, his eyes are red and the three orbs on his head are filled with dark matter.

They didn’t didn’t choose an evolution. They chose all of them at once and they were  _ pissed _ .

“Dang it, dang it, dang it!” Hizashi shook Shouta with all his might. “Wake up! Shouta, you’ve got to wake up!” Hizashi glances over his shoulder at Izuku. “Dang it, Shouta!” Thinking on the fly, Nemuri pushes the blonde out of the way and pulls Smokey’s pokeball from Shouta’s belt. He had kept Smokey and Pepper with him at all times to let them out when visiting Izuku and Chip.  _ Pepper is too young for this. She’ll be killed.  _ “Smokey, come out!” She releases the Houndoom. “Your trainer has gone on a rampage. I need you to take Shouta,” Nemuri takes Absol’s, Umbreon’s, and Seviper’s balls, “and get him over to that hospital right there,” she points over to the hospital they just left.

“This is amazing!” Shigaraki laughs, coming out from behind Darkrai. “I always knew that Sensei was creating something powerful with all of those Eevee he took!” A wicked grin split Shigaraki’s face. “This is it! The final boss!”

Hizashi helped Nemuri get the unconscious Shouta onto Smokey’s back. “You…” Izuku’s voice was distorted, demonic almost. “Smokey, go!” The Houndoom took off sprinting. They were blown a nice bit away. Orbs of light grew from either of Izuku’s hands.

“Y̵̨̜̘̣͐̇͋̿̆O̶̠̩͚̜͚̗͋̊̚U̴̥̮̜͖̟̯͌̌ ̶̗̼̯͈̦̻͋̉T̸̡͆Ô̵̘̫͝O̶̹̽͛͛̚K̸̲̰̣̳̲̋̕ ̶̛̛̲̜̺̬͉͆Ę̶̡̬̰̮͂̋̉V̵̝̣̙̫̓̅̈́͜E̵̢̫̫͓̓̈́̉̉̽̇R̵̳̳̠͑́̆͜͝͠ͅY̷̙̹̰̗͖̯̊̃͆̓͑T̷͓̓̆H̶͓̥̾̋͗̍͐Į̷̯̗̌́͜N̵̡̛̙͖̮̝̤̆̒̇͘G̸̱̟͖̝̪̹̎̑͗͆̍͝ ̷͈̣̞͉̒̾F̷̛̳̯͚̣̎́͆͒̕R̷̘̹̈̉̓̾O̵͎̺̳͌͌̓͆̔M̴̠̙̮͓̪̹̋̎̓̇ ̸̢̮̞̮́̂M̶̫̜̙̣̫̜̈́͋̈́͛͠Ȅ̷̍͂͊͘͜!̶̥͔͇͙̞͋̈́̉̇̿͠!̸̭̞͕̰̩̙̎̔̔͗!̸̨̝̜͇͉͎́͑̈́ ”

“Izuku, stop- Ah!” Nemuri fell as she tried to stand. Her legs bled from her knees from the car crash. Izuku and Chip let loose another blow of power. * **!BOOM!** * People screamed all around them. Hizashi and Nemuri let out all of their pokemon and Shouta’s. “Help the civilians evacuate,” Hizashi commanded. He got his arms under Nemuri and lifted her up. “What about Izuku and Chip?!”

Hizashi shook his head. He ran for cover. “Can’t do anything about them now, it is too dangerous to get close.” He set her down inside of a store where civilians were cowering. “Either way, I don’t expect there to be any less destruction than this to take down the League once and for all. It just happens to be coming from one person. You saw the fight between All Might and that All For One villain. I don’t expect this to be worse than that. I am going to go help evacuate. If you find that you can stand then I need you to deal with,” he gestured out of the window at the rampaging Izuku and Chip, “ _ that _ .” Nemuri paled. “I can’t calm him down! I’m not Shouta, Hizashi!” The blonde stood. “Maybe not but you are the closest thing they have to a mother.” He turned around to the hiding civilians. “I am Professional Hero Present Mic! Follow me and I will guide you to safety while the hero outside is keeping the villains wrapped up!”

Nemuri looked out the window.  _ Shouta, please be alright because without you _ , Nemuri gulped,  _ I don’t think the world can handle what monster it created. _

____________________________

“Izuku and Chip are on a rampage?” Nedzu asks in shock. Over the phone, Present Mic is helping with the evacuation. “Shigaraki blew up our transport and Eraserhead got knocked out in the process with bleeding from the head,” Present Mic replies in a hurry. “They couldn’t get him to wake up. Right now as far as they know, Eraserhead is as good as dead.”

“Is he?”

…

…

…

“I don’t know,” Present Mic admitted. “But right now I don’t have time to be concerned about that. Shigaraki said something about making something out of Izuku and Chip. I don’t know what it is but it is enough to keep Shigaraki tied up right now. We need all hands on deck evacuating the civilians.” Nedzu nods, hoping away from his desk. “I’m on my way. I’ve been known to fight my fair share of battles here and there.” “Thank you. Godspeed.” Present Mic hung up.

Nedzu rushed down the halls of UA where he was tracking the flow of the battle and sending reinforcements as needed.. The villain forces were slowly getting closer and closer to UA, almost forming a circle around them and pressing the heroes in. The students were doing surprisingly well. Nedzu supposes as time goes on and quirks and elements evolve and grow stronger so do the wielders. Nevertheless, they are only students. And Izuku and Chip… He knew he saw a sudden power surge on his screen but he truly hoped it wasn’t this. He should have pulled them from the hospital sooner. They could have come with a portal IV like they had been.

Nedzu shakes his head.  _ No time to worry about it now _ . He jumped into his bulldozer.  _ It’s time to fight! _

____________________________

_ Why?! What did I do that was so wrong?! I ate it! I hate it all! I HaTe It!!! _

Izuku couldn’t see straight. Between pure rage, gallons of adrenaline in his veins, and tears pouring from his eyes, Izuku’s vision was shaky. But he saw one thing. That man… That piece of junk who did nothing but make Izuku’s life miserable! And now… And now-!

\-----

_ ‘Dad. Wake up.’ _

\-----

“STOP HIDING!!!” he screeched. His throat felt like it was being ripped to shreds. “FACE WHAT YOU HAVE DONE!!!” He didn’t know what he was doing, oly that he was emitting some sort of power and that was hurting the other. Hurting Mr. Midoriya just like he did to him for  _ fifteen years. _ “I’LL KILL YOU! I’LL KILL YOU FOR KILLING HIM!”

\-----

_ ‘I love you!’ _

_ ‘I love you too. Both of you.’ _

\-----

“  **Í̶͔̇̃'̶̼̔̒L̷̨͚̤̗͆L̸͚̠̼͓̊ ̷͙̹̑͠K̶͔̺̠̟̊I̵̯͇͔̦͌L̸̞͆͗̃̄L̷͕̫͉͐͌ ̴̩̪̺̽̃̍͝Y̴̞͕̖̫̎̉̔͠O̸̧͓̩͇͛Ṳ̸̋!̵͎̟̔͆̎!̵̧̝̉̈͂!̶̻̅ͅ** ”

It hurt. Everything hurt. His bones creaked under the weight of the incomplete power he was using. The very fibers of his body felt like they were ripping apart. In his chest that stone they put under his ribs throbbed as if it knew this evolution they had created so forcibly wasn’t meant to be something in nature at all. Izuku screeched as he let out another beam of light. Beside him, Chip bolted off with speed too fast for the eye to see. He bounced off of walls of buildings firing off power from every corner at the Darkrai who continued to defend that wretched being behind him. 

So caught up in his rage, Izuku was oblivious to the warp gate opening behind him. A dry, cracked hand reached out for him.

* **BOOM** *

Shiga- _Mr. Midoriya_ -raki screamed as from above two psybeams hit Kurogiri from above, the mist man forcibly closing the warp gate and cutting off Shigaraki’s arm from the elbow down. The hand fell just close enough that it brushed Izuku’s right calf. Red eyes blew wide as it began to disintegrate.

\-----

_ ‘Dad, it hurts! Please! It burns!’ _

\-----

“STOMP TOYING WITH ME!!!” Izuku whipped around and let out a massive beam of power at the ground. * **BOOM** * The disintegration stopped because the arm had been cut off but it left a massive, bloody hole in Izuku’s leg so deep one could see the bone. He whipped back around and smashed his leg to the ground, a loud * **crack** * echoing. He screamed. “COME BACK HERE!!!” 

____________________________

Madame Olympia arrived just in time to see the warp gate opening. “Meowstics,” she commanded. Their combined psybeams hit Kurogiri and made him close the warp gate. Shigaraki reeled back as his arm was cut off. That poor, sweet boy she had watched over for the better half of internship week was no more to be found. Instead, a boil ball of rage bolted across the battlefield heading straight for the Darkrai.

Madame Olympia threw out her hand to her psychic students just arriving. “Protect the beacon at all costs!” she commanded. “And get any straggling civilians away with your psychic powers!”

Madame Olympia watches as blood pours from Midoriya’s leg.  _ Hold on, young one.  _ She readied an attack on the Darkrai.  _ Kalos still needs you alive! _

____________________________

Hizashi was struggling to keep calm as he ushered the last of the known civilians in the area to the safe zone a few rescue heroes had set up. He had to keep up appearances for the sake of the civilians. “Doom!” Hizashi whipped around. Smokey came running up to him, stopping just short of colliding with the hero. “Smokey! Did you get Shouta to the hospital?” he asked. Smokey nodded. “Is he conscious?” Smokey shook his head. “Suck… Alright, is the hospital being protected by heroes? That is the most important part. That is an emergency hospital.” Smokey nodded furiously.  _ Well at least that is one good thing. _ “Exploud! We are going to the front lines! Let’s go!” 

____________________________

Nemuri couldn’t dare get close to Izuku and Chip as they are now but luckily Madame Olympia came in to apparently protect him. For now, Nemuri needed to get herself away, even if it meant she had to crawl. So that is just what she did. With the help of Liepard and Butterfree, one arm on each, Nemuri sort of crouch-waddled away. “Let's try to head to a villain populated area,” she decided. “I can use my quirk from a range if you help blow it, Butterfree.” “Free.” Nemuri looked over her shoulder.

_ Whoever is up there please protect that boy and that Eevee. World knows they need it. _

____________________________

* **BAM** * * **BAM** * * **BAM** *

Hitoshi stumbled back, head spinning.  _ How many hits was that now? _ It was one person but more than one person? The same person split into multiples of himself? It was like he was everywhere and nowhere at all. * **BAM** * Another. * **BAM** * And another… Hitoshi swayed. He felt like he was being toyed with. He was too dizzy to dodge, too tired to do anything more than try to stay on his feet. * **BAM** * Espurr was down for the count having been taken down by a Haunter. Purrloin world knows where she was. * **BAM** * Hitoshi tripped over his feet and fell on his rear. * **BAM** * To his side. * **BAM** * Hitoshi curled into a loose ball but it was soon broken by a series of kicks. He saw the foot coming to his head but he couldn’t move. His body refused to cooperate.

“Thievul!” The fox-like pokemon jumped over him and tackled the ever multiplying man. Viridian eyes struggled to stay focused on them. The clones soon began to melt around them. “Hang on, kid,” Black Out’s voice came from behind him. Hands grabbed Hitoshi from under the arms. He numbly felt his body be dragged. “Thievul,” Black Out spoke to her pokemon, “get Blank out of here.” He was placed over the pokemon’s back.  _ No… I have to fight… _ “Bl- ack Ou- t,” his voice was scratchy. It hurt to speak. The woman shook her head. “You have a life ahead of you, kid. Thievul, go.” Hitoshi felt the pokemon move. A sudden dark washed over him. He knew this darkness. In the few days he had been with Black Out she trained him to rely on sound instead of vision using her quirk to blind him. The darkness was so… peaceful. The sound of the battle around him soon faded out and Hitoshi fell unconscious. The last thing he remembered thinking was:

_ Oh. We’re losing, aren’t we? _

____________________________

_ I can’t keep this up much longer! _

Eijiro had his body over Kaminari’s. Kaminari had completely short circuited. The sparks of electricity didn’t affect Eijiro much as his element was ground after all. Other attacks worked really well though! His back burned as he was beaten against by attack after attack. His body shook and creaked as it grated against itself as Eijiro fought to keep his entire body hardened. He squeezed his red eyes shut.

_ Please! Someone help us! We can’t beat them! _

____________________________

* **BOOM** *

* **BOOM** *

* **Boom** *

Katsuki clicked his tongue. That explosion was smaller. Much smaller. His arms ached from quirk overuse. “Awww, all out of steam, wittle boy?” a girl laughed. She and her pokemon charged at him. “Don’t…” Katsuki growled. “DON’T UNDERESTIMATE ME!!!” He forced another massive explosion from his hands. * **BOOOOOM** * The girl and all surrounding living things were thrown back. Katsuki slouched over. He wiped the sweat from his chin with his wrist.  _ Don’t underestimate me, huh? _ Katsuki looked over the battlefield at all for the villains that almost doubled the forces of the heroes in numbers. He didn’t want to admit it but he was out of steam. A wave of water rose from the ground, tearing through everyone, villain and hero alike, in its wake. It towered over Katsuki. He tried to blast himself away. * **pop** * * **pop** * * **pop** * 

_ Ah, I guess I’m out of fuel.  _ He watched as the sun was blocked out as the wave came crashing over him.  _ Of course it’s my type weakness too. Dang it. _

____________________________

_ It burns!  _ Shoto dodged another round of blue flames.  _ This is so much worse than Endeavor’s flames!  _ Shoto sent out another wave of ice at the scarred villain. The amount of ice he sent was getting smaller each time. The only reason Shoto could continue sending ice out was because this villain’s flames were keeping him from hypothermia. 

“Ha ha ha! Is that the best you can do, Shoto?!” Shoto flinched.  _ How does he know my name? _ Those piercing blue eyes, so much like Endeavor’s gleamed in the fire and ice. “Daddy dearest just couldn’t make another as great as me, huh?”

Shoto’s mind blanked. The villain, Dabi he thinks was the name, cackled. “I’ve waited so long for this,  _ brother _ .” Shoto’s vision was soon nothing more than the light of fire and his screams fell upon deaf ears.

____________________________

“No no no no NO! Someone help!” Ochaco held Tsu’s head in her hands as the girl lay unconscious. “T- Tsu! Wake up! Wake up!” Ochaco couldn’t see straight as she tried to scoop up the blood that was rapidly increasing around them back into her friend’s side where a massive hole now sat instead of flesh. “Someone! She’s going to die!”

“Tee hee hee, isn’t she lovely?” Ochaco’s head snapped up. That girl from the training camp strolled up to her, blood splattered all over her clothes and face. Toga giggled. “Everyone is so much prettier in blood!” “How can you say that?!” Ochaco screeched. “She’s dying!” Toga laughed. “Ochaco-chaco!” Toga’s eyes narrowed into devilish slits that sent shivers down Ochaco’s spine. “ _ Do you really think I care? _ ”

Ochaco hung her head.  _ No… These are villains…  _ She looked down at Tsu, at the blood trickling from her friend’s mouth. The girl carefully set Tsu to lay fully on the ground. She stood, wobbling slightly. Toga squealed. “Let’s play, Ochaco! I want,” she ran forward, “to see your blood too!”

Anger burned in the brunette’s heart. She ran to meet the villain head on.

____________________________

Shigaraki screeched as his arm was cut off. He held his elbow with his left hand, hand overflowing with blood. “The final boss shouldn’t be this hard!” Shigaraki slammed his left hand to the ground. It cracked. The cracks spread all down the streets and into the stores before they burst into dust.  Izuku and Chip jumped. Izuku leaned on the window ledge of a broken window. “SHUT UP! WAS IT ALL JUST A GAME TO YOU?!” A beam of dark matter aimed at him was set off by Darkrai. Izuku leapt off of the building. His foot sunk into the dust of the streets below. It was like deep snow, reaching halfway to his knee before he stopped at the earth.

“Meowstic’s, psybeam!” Izuku wasn’t really caring about the heroes flying around him. He wasn’t conscious enough to know they were there. His vision rested solely on Shig- _Mr. Midoriya_ -araki. The psybeams headed towards Shigaraki at a rapid rate. “Darkrai!” Darkrai flew in front of them to take the hit for his trainer leaving Shigaraki right open.

Chip leapt off of the building he was still on. “G̸̡̧͈̪̜̠̯̑̔̃͐̆̋͒͗A̸̬̩̜͂̊͗̂͗́͆̔̊͗̎̕̚L̷̨̗͔̰̪̺̠̲̰̈̈́̽̒̾̾͐͐͜͝͠͠Ȩ̸̞̥̯̺͉͓̀͛͊̌̓̊̎͌͗̀̒̊́Ơ̷̝͚̹͎͍͂̄̿͑͂̈̂̈́̏͝͝Ṇ̵̹͇͙̩́̉̒̃̋̅̊̓̈́̍͗̎̈́̈́̚” Chip’s voice was so distorted, a combination of too many evolutions at once.

He fired off a beam of light at the exposed villain. A warp gate opened, one in front of the light and one behind Izuku. * **BOOM** * Izuku screamed as he was blasted with the force. From a nearby rooftop, Kurogiri stumbled to his feet after the initial attack on him had put him out. “The warp user, take him out!” Madame Olympia commanded.

Izuku was seething.  _ It’s always like this!  _ He clawed at the ground.  _ Every single time!!! Why does this keep happening?!  _ Izuku pushed himself up with his hands but his right leg broke under its already wounded state and the weight of him. Izuku was forced to one knee. “So the boss is at its last health bar.” Shig- _Mr. Midoriya_ -araki strode towards him. In his chest, Izuku felt the stone pounding against his ribs, pulsing. * **crack** * He growled. Red eyes met the villain’s red eyes. “None of this would have happened if you hadn't run away.”

\-----

_ ‘Obey.’ _

\-----

The pals of Izuku’s hands lit up as he summoned more power to them.  _ None of this? None of what?  _ Feet stopped in front of him. “Shut up…” A hand reached for his head. “ **S̵͈̳͕̈́̎͒́̇̋̾̓̈́̀́̉͘͘̚ͅͅḦ̷̨̜͖̭̮͚̼̲̭͈̰͙́̅̿̓̊U̵͚̓͗̑̃̍̍̎̈́̉͌̚T̷̨̛̳̤͎̋̌̓̇̒̂͑̔̐͊͌͒̍͝ ̴̨̡̘͚̯͎͇͔̮͎̣̩͋̎̓̆͑ͅU̶̯̼̻̱̤̱̦͎̦̣͎͉̜̣̎ͅP̶̣̭̬̘̮̹͍̺͖͈̜͚̅͌̉̇̆̃!̴͚̰̖̜̂̇̌̑̆̽ͅ** ” Izuku swung his arm. His hand slammed into Shigaraki’s face, power exploding out.

“ _ I _ made you beat me?! Torture me?!” Izuku wrestled Shigaraki to the ground. “ _ I  _ made you beat her?! Rape her?!  _ I  _ made my own mother forget me?!” He pounded the man beneath him with everything he had, tears and blood flying. * **crack** * It felt like the stone was bleeding into him. It  _ burned _ . Shigaraki grabbed at the ground. The two began to fall deeper and deeper into the earth as it disintegrated beneath them. Izuku barely registered his legs beginning to slowly disintegrate, only his own energy and power slowing down the process. “ _ I _ killed D-”

\-----

_ ‘Dad, i- it’s time to wake up.’ _

\-----

“ **Y̶̖̜̤̊̀̄̓̾̎̏̾́̋̅̈́O̶͓͋̏̋̾͒̐̒̄͝U̵͕̳̫̭̥͒͐͐͆͌̊͂́̐ ̵̙̳͎̄̎̑̿͗̏̓͠D̴̢̗̜͚̯̝̯̦̻̈́͗̍̋̽͗̅͜͜I̸̗̖͂D̷̢̟͎̻̫̬̗̗̎͋̀̾ ̵̢̨͔͎͈͇͕̭͇͓̿̆͒̏́͌̊̚͜͠ͅT̸̹̘̦̼̟̥̹̪͗Ḩ̶̦͍̇͐̅̋̀̈́͋̿̿͑̕͠Ì̸̠̭̃͗̆̈͐̆̈́̉͐̇̚S̷̯͈͙͎̰̜̳̹̆͆͐͊͆̌̚̚!̵͖͎̟̜̦̮** “ Izuku screamed. “IT WAS ALWAYS YOU!!!!!” 

Shigaraki tried to reach up and tried to grab him between Izuku’s glowing fists. The now white-haired boy grabbed the villain’s arm. “YOU CREATED THIS!” * **Crack** * “YOU DID THIS TO ME!!!” Izuku took the man’s arm between his hands. “I HATE YOU!” He snapped it eliciting another cry from Shigaraki below. “I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU!” Shigaraki’s arm fell limply to the ground. * **CrAcK** * Izuku gasped, clutching his chest. The pain only served to anger him even more, remembering all of the pain this man inflicted on him over the years.

“G̸̡̧͈̪̜̠̯̑̔̃͐̆̋͒͗A̸̬̩̜͂̊͗̂͗́͆̔̊͗̎̕̚L̷̨̗͔̰̪̺̠̲̰̈̈́̽̒̾̾͐͐͜͝͠͠Ȩ̸̞̥̯̺͉͓̀͛͊̌̓̊̎͌͗̀̒̊́Ơ̷̝͚̹͎͍͂̄̿͑͂̈̂̈́̏͝͝Ṇ̵̹͇͙̩́̉̒̃̋̅̊̓̈́̍͗̎̈́̈́̚!”

Izuku’s head snapped up. Above him in the hole created by Shigaraki flew Darkrai in a blur of black.  _ Black _ …

Izuku used to hate that color so much. It was the same color as Mr. Midoriya’s curly hair. As his cold eyes that never stopped glaring at Izuku. The same color as Inha’s hair, the girl who stole his family from him. Black was the color of the darkness he was left in stuck below the earth in that basement. The same color as the ash that covered his body after every ‘training’ session.

Izuku  _ hated _ that color.

And then… he didn’t. It was the same color of the long hair of another man. The same color as that man’s eyes that were so, so warm. The same color as his Umbreon that became like a brother to Chip. It was same color as Izuku’s-

\-----

_ ‘I love you too. Both of you.’ _

\-----

* **CRACK** *

Izuku’s mouth opened in an ear piercing, glass shattering scream and following it an explosion of light and power.

“ **AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!** ”

It was a sound that rivals a siren’s wail. It was the cry of a broken child so distorted, so pained, so ailed by the world. It was a cry of pure hatred, unbridled anger. It was the cry of a grieving son who had lost everything, even his father. 

From above jumping into the hole after Darkrai, Chip let out another giant burst of power. The two collided against the Darkrai in the middle. The light was blinding. They seemed to swallow each other up into a condensed ball of sheer power

* **!** **_S_ ** **!** **_H_ ** **!** **_A_ ** **!** **_T_ ** **!** **_T_ ** **!** **_E_ ** **!** **_R_ ** **!** *

The stone in Izuku exploded, the power it held leaving his body all at once. The hybrid cells in his body burst simultaneously affecting the surrounding cells that began to blow up as well. The flow of blood stopped and the cells could not reproduce in time to replace the massive loss of the exploding cells. At the same time, the excess power hit the condensed orb of power.

* **!!!BOOM!!!** *

The earth around them lifted and tore apart, parts of it evaporating into the atmosphere. Darkrai’s cry was covered up by the decimals the sound this created, as though a nuclear missile had hit the ground. Its body of shadow was torn apart by the power and scattered to the air. The power of a mythical pokemon dying adding to the dying power. Izuku’s Chip’s and Shigaraki’s bodies began to burn, steam rising from them as the moisture from their bodies evaporated. Hair and fur caught on fire only to be blown out by the gust of winds the explosion created.

Izuku didn’t know when it stopped or when the light faded. He couldn’t feel his body anymore. His vision was going dark. Chip fell to the ground unconscious beside him shifting into a normal, three-legged Eevee. Izuku didn’t feel his body lose form. His claws retracted back into normal nails and his fangs to normal teeth. His hair, greatly shortened from the fire, grew in his normal green. His eyes lost their red, lost their rainbow hue, and once again shine a deep viridian. As soon as there glimmer appeared it was gone. He stared up at the smoke rising from all around him. Izuku always did hate the smoke. Tears slowly rolled down his face. He opened his mouth and used the last breath he could consciously take.

\-----

_ ‘I love you.’ _

\-----

“Da- ddy…”

____________________________

“Madame Olympia! The beacon!” Sheryl yelled.

Madame Olympia swung around from finally taking down Kurogiri just in time to see the Darkrai dive into a massive hole in the grou-  _ WHEN DID THAT GET THERE?! _ Midoriya’s Eev- pokemon jumped down into it after the mythical pokemon. “Meowstics!” The three of them zipped over only to freeze midair when an ear piercing screech hit their ears. A beam of light great in diameter burst from the hole and shot into the sky. It blew away the clouds. Madame Olympia had to shield her eyes from the light. When it died down the clouds began to gather again, dark. Rain began to fall. She and the Meowstics floated over the hole and peered down.

The psychic gym leader paled. A glowing orb was swallowing Darkrai hole getting bigger and bigger and- She saw it spark. Madame Olympia spun around midair. “RUN!” she screamed with unusual panic. “RUN!!!!!”

She and the other psychic students didn’t get very far before the earth began to rumble and the ground exploded. Buildings were demolished, water lines busted, electrical lines fell and started fires all around. “It’s going to reach emergency hospital!” Sheryl yelled, the heat chasing after her as she flew beside Madame Olympia. “All psychic students and pokemon,” she commanded her group and sidekicks, “combine your powers! Protect the hospital!”

Together all of the psychic students and pokemon and Madame Olympia herself turned around. They combined their psychic powers to create a barrier before the waves of power could get any closer to the hospital where many patients already on death’s door waited, watching in fear as unknown expanding light came toward them. Madame Olympia groaned against the weight of the power. She could feel her psychic powers dwindling. “HOLD IT! DON’T LET IT DOWN!” And they did. Against seemingly all odds, Madame Olympia and the others held their barrier until the light and power disappeared.

The woman fell to the ground, panting. “M- Madame…” Sheryl panted. “I’m n- not the number four hero in the country f- for a reason.” Recently moved up a rank due to All Might’s retirement. Madame Olympia shook her head and forced herself to her feet. She looked to either side of her where her Meowstics lay unconscious. She sighed and returned them to their balls. “You did well. Sherly, go make sure everyone is okay. Bring the wounded to the safe zone. I am going to go check things out.”

Madame Olympia jumped down into the massive crater that the explosion left. Some overturned buildings on their sides were alight with green fire. The gym leader narrows her eyes, remembering the vision she had back after the sports festival. “So that is what it meant.” She shook her head. Slowly, tiredly, Madame Olympia crossed the expanse to the hole in the ground where steam was rising. At this point it was only a small dip at the new ground level as the power leveled it out around the inhabitants. The woman leaped down into the hole.

Sitting in what looked like a start of ash was Midoriya Izuku on his knees straddling an unconscious Shigaraki Tomura. By their side was the small Eevee on his side. 

Madame Olympia scooped up the boy in her arms. She cringed when blood began to pour from Midoriya’s legs, the fronts of them completely disintegrated. The back of his right calf was gone too leaving mostly only a bone but a bit of flesh did hang onto it. It made Madame Olympia want to gag. Midoriya’s eyes were blown wide but completely unseeing, dull. Blood as though mimicking tears stained his cheeks coming from his eyes. His hands and fingers were stained black with ash. His entire body was covered in burns. Chip was none better as blood stained his fur from his eyes. All three legs were bent awkwardly, broken from the fall. His body too was burned. She leaned down and pressed her ear to his chest. There was scarcely a heartbeat but it was there.  _ Not for long without medical attention _ .

Shigaraki, most likely dead,was missing half of one arm, the other was broken, his face was caved in almost, and his body too was covered in burns. Madame Olympia chose to leave him for the other heroes to find. Instead using the last bit of psychic power she could, she lifted Chip and walked out, the Eevee floating behind her. With the sounds of the war in the distance, Madame Olympia spoke.

“I’m sorry,” she sighed. “When I originally had the vision of you two I was focused too much on you saving Kalos. I was completely blind to your inner turmoil. I didn’t think things would turn out like this.” She shook her head remembering Shigaraki who, after One For All was arrested, became the number one threat to Kalos. “I guess I got my wish.” She looked up at the destruction around her. “But at what cost?”

Madame Olympia got Midoriya and Chip to the emergency hospital. It had lost power understandably but electric pokemon were working their hardest to keep it up in the back until the utility workers could come and work on the lines. The woman left the hospital. She stared up at the sky, feeling the rain drip on her face.

Suddenly a vision shook her. Her eyes blew wide.

\-----

_‘Get away from him!’_ _a black haired man lashed out at doctors who tried get close to a hospital cot._

_ The sound of a flatline beep. _

_ ‘He’s alive! Izuku, wake up!’ _

_ ‘Izuku!’ _

_ ‘IZUKU!’ _

\-----

Madame Olympia felt tears streaming down her face at the unwillingly saw vision.  Sometimes having the power to see the future isn’t all that it is made out to be. Sometimes there are things you simply don’t want to see. She shook her head and ran to join her sidekicks at the safe zone.

____________________________

Little did they know that the beam of light created by Izuku and Chip in their fit of rage would spark a new sense of determination in the students and teachers of UA Trainer’s Academy. It wasn’t exactly the light. It was the cry that pierced their hearts.

Eijiro was almost blown away by the shockwave from the explosion but he stood firm. He heard that cry and he responded. “You villains keep attacking my man Izuku!” he yells, slamming his fist into the face of a pink haired villain. “I don’t care who you say you are, Rocket whatever. A man never leaves his friend hanging!” * **BAM** * His fists smashes into the woman’s gut so hard it brings her to her knees. 

Behind him, Kaminari stumbles to his feet. His face is twisted as though he is trying to keep his circuits together. “You’ve… messed… with Izuku… one too many… times…” the girl from the Rocket Trio looks up just as Kaminari’s hand rests on her face. “ _ Screw off _ ,” he growls and the woman screams as her body takes the full force of his electrical attack.

The two turn to face the villains together. Sparks fly from Kaminari’s palms. Eijiro’s fists clash together threateningly. “Don’t forget what they did to Mirio,” a new voice joins them. Amajiki-senpai, third year hero course student, hero alias: Suneater. Eijiro smirks. “Let’s blast them away!”

____________________________

Ochaco felt as though her soul shattered along with the one who let out that scream.  _ Izuku… _ She looks down at the unconscious blonde beneath her. “It’s over for you and all of your villain ‘friends’, Toga.” Ochaco looks over her shoulder at Tsu. She knows the girl is already dead. Ochaco grits her teeth, biting her tongue to prevent her from crying. She turns her head forward towards the next enemy.  _ Izuku… Tsu… _ Ochaco rushed forward.

_ I’ll avenge the both of you! _

____________________________

Mina slid through the villains on her slime in her slime-body form. Any villain who hit her was instantly burned. “Come on, heroes!”

\-----

Hanta swung from the telephone pole using his tape and kicked a man in the face. “We’ve got a war to win!”

\-----

Mashirao knocked a girl off her feet with his tail. “We won’t bow down to these villains anymore.”

\-----

Tenya revved his engines and ran through the crowd of villains, arms out taking out villains with his metal armor. He skidded to a halt and glared behind him. “You’ve had your fun, villains.”

\-----

Ash picked up a fallen villain girl by her ankles and spun her around and around, powered up by all of the broken electricity lines around him. Her body was used as a weapon against her comrades until Ash threw her off into the crowd. He punched his hand to his fist. “Now it’s our turn!”

\-----

Kyouka slammed her speakers to the ground, earphone jacks connected to either one.  _ Heartbeat Earthquake! _ The ground rumbled and broke. The villains affected were pushed down to it as it broke and covered them by Noivern’s sound waves. “We’ll show you-”

\-----

Tesla blows away the villains around him with a massive gust of air from his lungs. “-what it means-”

\-----

Yuga feels his stomach churn as he keeps his lazer beam on full blast, mowing down the villains. “-to go beyond-”

\-----

The forces of the heroes, from UA or not, shouted the inspiring phrase in their hearts as they stood strong for the city of Lumiose and its citizens.

“- **PLUS ULTRAAAAAA!!!!!** ”

____________________________

After the fall of Shigaraki, the other leaders of the League of Villains began to fall one by one. The Meta Liberation Army took note of this and soon began to lose their vigor, not having wanted this in the first place. They only fought because there was no way to turn back now. In the end the hero forces pushed back the villains and took in a massive haul of them to the police as well as some free lance, petty criminals who decided to take part in the fight on the villains behalf thinking it was their big break. They were wrong. 

Both sides lost a lot only for the forces of good to win out all because a man was too greedy and tried to create a super human being and when they couldn’t control it their creation fought back.

The same way Midoriya Hisashi got too greedy with his son’s body and tried to make money off of Izuku, All For One and then ultimately Shigaraki Tomura decided Izuku was his for the taking and it backfired. 

Nothing good ever comes from greed.

The heroes suffered great losses. Thousands lost their lives. Among the lost in the hero forces was Asui Tsuyu from UA Trainer’s School Class 1-A. From 1-A in critical condition were Todoroki Shoto, Shinsou Hitoshi, Bakugou Katsuki, Kaminari Denki, and Midoriya Izuku. Todoroki was found unconscious and almost unrecognizable coerced in ash and underneath his skin boiled and popped from severe burns. The man who was said to have attacked him, Dabi from the League of Villains, was never found. Shinsou had a large number of broken bones including multiple broken ribs one of which pierced a lung, a broken arm, a broken jaw, a cracked skull, and a broken nose. Bakugou tore many muscles and suffered severe dehydration from quirk overuse. He was in critical state after having been submerged in water for an extended amount of time greatly weakening his body against his fire type element. Despite being in a short circuited state already, Kaminari continued to fight and caused himself brain damage as well as physical injuries from outside attacks unable to dodge or deflect them in his state. Midoriya suffered major damage to his internal organs and body in general underneath the skin as most of his cells had exploded within him. His legs were mostly disintegrated and his brain suffered some internal damage as well. The bones within him seemed to thin out, dwindled down by the power he created. The stone in his chest that shattered would eventually dissolve out of him but until then it left a gaping, unsafe hole in his chest under his ribs and dangerously close to his heart. His body was similarly covered in burns , the same as Todoroki. His pokemon, Chip, was in a similar state as Midoriya aside from the gaping hole from the shattered stone.

The body of Shigaraki Tomura was found in the bottom of a massive crater that no one knew how it was created, at least, none that were willing to share and instead kept it to themselves for the safety of the one that created it. He was deemed dead upon be found from blood loss from his arm and it wasn’t pressed again. 

In the grand scheme of things, though the heroes may have won a lot felt as though it were lost. Still, they were able to rejoice in the taking down of the League of Villains and could count it as a win and a warning for the villain society. With their victory today, the heroes proclaimed loudly that no matter what the villains may try, at the end of the day justice will prevail overall.

And so the battle for Lumiose City and UA Trainer’s Academy was brought to a close, victory going to the heroes.


	28. The Will Of A Beating Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the Lumiose City Attack.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone feeling?

* **beep** …  **beep** …  **beep** …*

Black eyes slowly open to the rhythmic sound of a beeping heart monitor. Aizawa Shouta sits up in a hospital room donning a hospital gown. Around his forehead is a wrap of bandages holding a gauze pad to the back of his head. He yawns involuntarily.  _ What happened? _ Shouta looked out of the window. It was loud out, the sound of construction made itself very known.  _ I was going to visit Eri with Hizashi and Nemuri and… _ Shouta rubbed his head.  _ And... _

* **knock knock knock** *

“Coming in!” Hizashi’s voice called and the man entered without even waiting for an answer. “Ah! Shouta’s awake!” “Oh?” Nemuri poked her head in. “Hey there, sleepyhead,” she giggled. Shouta rolled his eyes. The two entered. “I just ‘woke up’ I guess,” he said. “What happened? Why am I in here?” he gestured to the room. Nemuri and Hizashi pulled up two very uncomfortable looking hospital chairs. “We were taking Izuku and Chip to the underground bunker,” Hizashi started, “when Shigaraki and the League raided the city. Shigaraki blew up our car and you hit your head on a telephone pole when you and Izuku were thrown out of it. Knocked you out cold and left a massive crack in your skull. Luckily it wasn’t anything too serious.” Nemuri huffed. “Izuku and Chip didn’t seem to think so.” Hizashi chuckled dryly. “Yeah, no kidding.”

Shouta shook his head. It throbbed painfully. “You’ve been out for a day after the attack,” Nemuri continues for Hizashi. “Now that you are awake a quick check up should be all you need to go home..” Shouta hummed. “How is everyone else? You said Lumiose City was attacked?”

“The League of Villains used the number force of the Meta Liberation Army and tried to take down the city and take control of UA says Re-Destro after we interrogated him. Izuku and Chip blew up a pretty good portion of the city when fighting Shigaraki and Darkrai which shut down a lot of the villain’s attacks when they won. They went on a pretty good rampage after you got knocked out. There were of course some injuries, a lot of bad ones but we will tell you those later when you are back home. Right now Todoroki, Kaminari, Bakugou, Shinsou, and Izuku are all in this hospital too receiving treatment.”

Shouta nodded, looking down. He furrowed his eyebrows. “Todoroki, Kaminari, Bakugou, Shinsou… those are all my students,” he stated. Hizashi and Nemuri nodded. “Yes…?” Shouta rubbed his head. “Todoroki… Kaminari… Bakugou… Shinsou… You’ve been saying this other name a lot,” Shouta muses. He looks up at his friends.

“ **Who are ‘** **_Izuku_ ** **’ and ‘** **_Chip_ ** **’?** ”

It took less than a second for Hizashi and Nemuri’s faces to fall. “Sh- Sho, ask that again,” Hizashi commanded. Shouta sighed. “You keep saying ‘Izuku this’ and ‘Chip that’ like I am supposed to know who they are or something. I don’t. Who are they?”

Nemuri covers her mouth. “Oh my gosh,” she whispers. Hizashi clears his throat. “Ah ha ha! Well the doctor said you may experience so slight memory loss for a bit but it should come back to you shortly.” He waved him. “Don’t worry about it! I, um, we’ll go get the doctor for you so you can go home.” They stood. “Hey, wai-” the two left.

Shouta stared at the door.  _ What was that all about? _

____________________________

“Nemuri, calm the heck down,” Hizashi stopped further down the hallway and grabbed her by the shoulders. She had tears in her eyes. “He doesn’t remember them, Hizashi! Shouta doesn-” “I know!” Hizashi half-shouted, still respecting that they were, in fact, in a hospital. In the emergency ward no less. “I know…” Hizashi hung his head. “But the doctor said this might happen. Either way, I don’t think it will be a problem until either Shouta remembers or Izuku and Chip wake up and at this moment it really isn’t looking like they will so let’s just cross that bridge when we come to it, k?” 

Nemuri nodded sadly. 

The two went to get Doctor Suzuki who had insisted on taking on Shouta and Izuku as they already knew each other. Shouta was allowed to head home but if his memory did not return within three days they should contact the hospital again.

“I’ll take care of  _ those two _ ,” Doctor Suzuki winked knowing the situation now. “Now, Aizawa,” the man tutted, “I’ve seen you here far too often so the next time how about we meet outside of the hospital walls.” Shouta furrowed his eyebrows. “Right... “ Hizashi could see the cogs trying to turn in Shouta’s head as to why he was here almost every day for the past month. He remembered being here just not why. There was like a rock or something lodged in between the cogs in his mind. 

After doing a quick run to all of the wounded students, Hizashi and Nemuri took Shouta home under strict orders that Shouta was not allowed to drive himself until his memory returned. 

“How is Eri?” Shouta asked. Hizashi hummed.  _ So he remembers that much. _ “She’s well.” They had done most of the explaining on the drive to UA. “Though a bit antsy without you to be there with your quirk to cancel out hers.” “Has she slipped up with it?” “Nope!” Shouta hummed before falling back into silence until- “How are the other students…?”

Nemuri frowned. “They are taking Asui’s death pretty hard,” she whispered. “They’ve been sent home to their parents for a few days to recuperate and for mental support but they would sure like to hear from you at some point, Sho.”  _ We should probably warn them about the whole forgetting Izuku thing. _

  
  


Hizashi left Shouta to Nemuri once they got to UA. “You take him to Eri and Mirio,” he said. “Where are you going?” she asked. Hizashi’s smile strained. “Someone has to be with Izuku and Chip even if it isn’t Shouta and even if they don’t wake up. Shouta’s not the only one who’s heart was penetrated by those two.” And so that is what they did.

More or less, Hizashi just wanted some time to think. Izuku and Chip were in critical condition. Shouta had memory loss of the two of them. He was overbooked with paperwork from the attack and relief efforts. The students were in turmoil though they did their best to reassure them that the threat was gone. They had gone through too much in a year. Or a lifetime at that. Hizashi himself was still recovering from a couple of bruised ribs that made it hard to breathe but not detrimental. He had work as a hero, work as a teacher, and work as a radio host on top of it all and Hizashi was dead tired. He almost wished that he was the one who had gotten knocked out instead of Shouta. Hizashi stops just outside of the crater that was gradually being filled.  _ Maybe then we could have prevented this. _ He looked over at the hospital not but a few feet away.  _ Maybe then Izuku and Chip might have had a chance at surviving. _

Izuku and Chip were alive but their survival to death rate ratio was 20-80, not in their favor. 

Hizashi made his way through the emergency hospital corridors. He stopped and peaked in at each of the wounded students. Only Class 1-A students were here. Class 1-B students were at another hospital where their teacher had been treated. Todoroki had gained consciousness that morning but was disoriented from pain medicine. His family was with him now. Shinsou woke up the day before and bless his heart both of his parents came and acted civil around each other enough to care more about their son than their broken relationship. Kaminari was expected to leave the hospital tomorrow. Bakugou too. And Izuku and Chip?

Hizashi opened the door to their room. “Hey, little listeners,” he whispered. As for Izuku and Chip, them waking up was set upon a miracle.

“Ah, Present Mic,” Doctor Suzuki looked up from his clipboard by the boy’s side. “Am I interrupting?” Hizashi asked, walking in. The man shook his head. “Not at all but I am afraid you won’t be able to stay for long. Midoriya is just about to go in for his second reparative surgery.” Hizashi nods. His eyes fall upon the heavily bandaged legs that are resting on a fluffy pillow elevated.

With the overtime work of Recovery Girl and several other specialists they were able to do a tissue replacement and reparative surgery on Izuku’s legs. So far they had gotten the front of the left leg back together using, sadly, the flesh of fallen heroes on the battlefield. Of course they had asked the families of the heroes beforehand. Once they heard the situation they knew exactly what their lost loved ones would want which was ultimately to save people. That being said, Izuku, if he woke up, would have trouble walking for the rest of his life and probably have crutches or a cane forever.

“Can I stay in with Chip?” he asked. Doctor Suzuki nodded. “That would be fine.” Hizashi bowed and made his way to the sleeping pair. Chip was in a cot beside Izuku’s. Both were wearing breathing masks. Hizashi sat in between them. He sighed and flopped his torso over Chip’s bed, just before the small creature. He didn’t want to deal with anything. They had won the fight but it felt like a dark cloud rested over all of Kalos.

* **Ding Ding** * Hizashi groaned and pulled out his phone.

  
  


**Nemuri!!!!!** :

Shouta thinks Smokey and Pepper are two pokemon he is taking care of for the school just so you know. That is what I told him.

  
  


Hizashi didn’t have the will to text back. She would see that he read it. The man reached over and gently pet Chip’s head. “Come back,” he whispered. “Please… I know you don’t want to but please come back…”

____________________________

“You’re leaving again?” Eri asked. Shouta’s heart twisted. He didn’t expect her to miss him this much. Mirio had been keeping her company well but she seemed to, without any other reference of a parent and at such a young age, have somewhat imprinted on Shouta or something.

“Sorry, Eri,” he patted her hand gently, “but I have to go do some paperwork. Don’t worry. You won’t have to stay down here much longer. You will probably be moved in with a hero like Mi-” Shouta’s brain stopped. The blurry image of a little girl with black hair flashed in his mind. “Shouta?” Nemuri pokes her head into the curtained room with worried and almost hopeful eyes. He shakes his head. “Will I be placed with you?” Eri asked.

Shouta hummed. “Maybe but I don’t know.” Nemuri chuckled warily. “W- we have to go, Shouta. Nedzu wants to talk with you.” He nodded and patted Eri’s hand again. The white haired little girl seemed to dislike head pats a lot so Shouta chose to not do that. Funny, he feels like he has given them out a lot recently as though there was someone who he was close to that did like them but no way in the world would he be giving them to Nemuri even if he was dating her and God forbid he give Hizashi one. “I’ll be back tomorrow,” he promised.

Shouta turned around to the pokemon messing around behind him. “Absol, Umbreon, Seviper, err… Smokey, Pepa-” “Pepper,” Nemuri cleared her voice. Shouta nodded. “Right, Pepper. Time to go all you.” Smokey was a Houndoom, a rather large one, and Pepper was a Poochyena that the school asked him to take care of apparently. Doctor Suzuki says he has slight memory loss and will for a day or two. Shouta does remember Smokey. The school got him from a criminal who was abusing his family. He slightly remembers Pe...pper? But it is iffy.

Shouta doesn’t like this whole memory loss thing. He knows he is forgetting things. There are these little black areas in his memories that make the next piece of the story not fit. There is like this really massive one that he can’t wrap his head around. It makes him feel like something is missing when he goes home. There are conversations he knows he had but not with who. Shouta doesn’t regularly talk to himself either. At least, he doesn’t think he does.

Nedzu’s talk was brief after he was informed of the memory loss.

\-----

_ ‘He doesn’t remember  _ certain p-e-o-p-l-e _ ,’ Nemuri put high emphasis on that. _

_ Nedzu stared at her for a few seconds. ‘Oh.’ His eyes widened ‘Oh! Oh no…’ _

\-----

It seemed like he had a lot he wanted to say though but couldn’t. In the end, Shouta was sent home with strict orders to inform Nedzu when he got his mind back together.

_ Seriously. Just what the heck am I not remembering for all of them to be acting like this?! _

“The students will be back in school next Monday,” Nemuri informs him. “If you need me just call 

But for now try and rest.” Shouta nods, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek. “Don’t worry, Nemuri,” mom came up behind him. “I’ll take care of him.” The raven-haired man sighed.  _ I can take care of myself just fine, thank you very much. _

He flopped on the couch when his girlfriend left. “Are you alright?” Mom asked. He nods. “Yeah. Everything just feels a little fuzzy right now. A little stalled. Like, it is obvious that a massive attack happened, the damage and paperwork build up is enough to tell me that much, but it feels like I am watching everything through a black and white screen or something.” Mom sits by his head, gently combing her hands through his hair. “I know, Shouta. Just give it time. When you get your memory back things will start moving again. Just give it time.” He closes his eyes. “Yeah…”

Shouta is glad to have his mother visiting. He doesn’t know why but even with five pokemon, plus Mom’s Litwik, his house feels so… empty. It’s kind of lonely.

____________________________

A couple of days have passed with no show of Shouta’s memory returning. Nemuri and Hizashi are getting worried but Doctor Suzuki said to give him up to three days. He mentioned maybe trying to hint at a few things here and there but try to not hint too drastically so Nemuri will sometimes just bring up Izuku’s or Chip’s name every once in a while in a conversation but nothing more than that.

“Come on, Sho, we have to go prepare for the students coming back tomorrow,” Nemuri taps her foot waiting for Shouta at the end of his hallway. Shouta pokes his head out of his room. “Nemuri, my house is literally connected to the dorm. I can go alone.” The woman shook her head defiantly. “We were given orders not to leave you alone until you remember everything and you, my fair sir, have remembered jack squat!”

Black eyes narrowed at her from down the hall. Her boyfriend sighed and left his room, Pepper following. Pepper pressed herself close to the opposite wall of Izuku’s room as they passed. The little Poochyena was so sweet, wanting to take part in watching over Shouta but she was a little, how do you say it, naive on the being discreet part. She is just a puppy after all.

Shouta narrowed his eyes at her. He looked back at the room. Nemuri could see the wheels trying to turn.  _ ‘Why doesn’t she like that room? It’s just the guest room.’ _ That is what Nemuri supposes he is probably thinking. Finally, Shouta stops. “Pepper, it’s just the guest room. Look,” he moves for it.

“AH!” Nemuri lurches forward before stopping herself. Shouta raises an eyebrow at her. Nemuri blushes. “J- just, you can show it to Pepper when we get back, r- right?”  _ And give me more time to come up with an excuse as to why you shouldn’t open that door. _ Shouta deadpans. “You too? It’s just,” he opens the door and pushes it open, “the guest,” he looks in, “room…” Nemuri squeezes her eyes shut, waiting for the eventual questions.  _ What do I say? I can’t say that it’s Izuku’s room. ‘Oh by the way! You have a son who is next to dead at the hospital right now! Yippie!’ NOT! _

* **thud** *

Nemuri cracks open her turquoise eyes. “Yena…” Poochyena whimpers. “Sho…?” Nemuri walks forward slowly. The man stares blankly at the room in front of him on his knees. He points over at her, not taking his eyes off of the room. “That name,” he says. “Izu-whatever. What was it again?” Kimika looks in with the other pokemon from the living room. Nemuri crouches beside Shouta.

“Izuku,” she states. Shouta nods. He puts his hand down. “Izuku,” he murmurs. “Izuku, Izuku, Iz-” The man’s black eyes widen. His head drops. Nemuri puts her hand on his leg. “Shouta, are you remembering?” Shouta holds his head in his hands. His breathing starts to become uneven. Nemuri’s head whips around to Kimika.  _ SOS! _ Kimika is already running over though. By the time she joins the two on the ground, Shouta is looking up. Tears slowly roll down his face.

“N- Nemuri,” he chokes, “Mom, wh- where is Izuku?”

Kimika just takes her son into her arms. Shouta’s breath hitches and then… he cries and each one breaks Nemuri’s heart.

____________________________

“Aizawa, calm down.”

“I need to see them!” Shouta pushes past Doctor Suzuki at the hospital. The man snags his arm. “I understand your distress but with the state they are in now whether you are there or not will not matter,” he states sternly. “Now, we can do this the easy way which is you getting the brain scan and then going to see Midoriya and Chip or me having your friend here knock you out and then doing the aforementioned steps,” the man gestures to Nemuri behind him. 

Shouta curses.  _ I forgot them! How did I forget Izuku and Chip of all things?!  _ He tries to be calm throughout the scan but it is so difficult when the most he knows right now is that his sons are in this hospital and they are critically injured and he freaking  _ forgot them _ for two whole days! What is he, Midoriya Inko? His brain is back in order and they are permitted to go see Izuku soon after the results from the scan come in.

Shouta almost has a breakdown when he sees them for the first time. Scratch that. Shouta  _ does _ have a breakdown. Izuku’s legs are completely covered in bandages, his hands too. Shouta couldn’t even begin to count the amount of IV’s in his and Chips arms/legs. Both have breathing masks on. The rest of their bodies are covered in bandages from burns. Chip is practically sinking into the pillow he is set on and Izuku sinking into the pillows he is propped against. They look so pale, so thin, so weak.

Shouta runs a shaky hand through Izuku’s hair. It is so much shorter now, going to just below his shoulders. “What happened…?” he whispers. Nemuri puts a hand on his shoulder. “When you got knocked out by the telephone pole Izuku and Chip thought you had died. You were bleeding heavily from your head and weren’t waking up. At that time you were the only thing holding them together. They went on a rampage. During that time they fought against Shigaraki and Darkrai in these strange white forms until eventually their bodies couldn’t handle their mutated forms.”

Doctor Suzuki nodded, coming over with his clipboard. “Their cells erupted inside of them,” he stated. “That stone that was in Midoriya exploded too. Shigaraki’s quirk disintegrated most of Midoriya’s legs. We were able to do emergency reparative surgery on them so right now they only need to heal and rest but I wouldn’t expect them to do anything as rigorous as hero training or even running. I doubt he will be able to ever run again in his life but if he wakes up with some physical therapy-”

“ _ IF  _ he wakes up, Doctor?” Shouta growls. Doctor Suzuki sweatdrops. “W- well, currently Midoriya and Chip are in unresponsive states.” He turns to the heart monitor and takes note of the rate again if only to avoid Shouta’s glare. “Their cells have mostly regenerated by now having been asleep for four days and I think you will be happy to hear that Midoriya’s are all human cells now. While, yes, their wounds are extensive they aren’t life threatening anymore. We have patched them up. Their minds also aren’t wounded in any way. They were a bit shaken up by the power but right now they are fine.”

Shouta waits for more but Doctor Suzuki stops there. “So?” Shouta finally asks. “Why is it still ‘if’ and not ‘when they wake up’?”

“That’s just it,” Doctor Suzuki finally turns back to him. “We don’t know why they haven’t woken up yet. There is nothing in their brain scans that resemble a wound causing a small coma or a large one. Their bodies are still healing and likely they could just be tired but they still should have woken up at least once.”

“Sleeping medicine?” Shouta asks.

“None, just pain.” Doctor Suzuki averts his eyes subconsciously. Shouta narrows his. He knows when someone is holding back. “What is it, Suzuki.” It isn’t a question. These are his sons they are talking about. 

“Sir, with all do respect, Midoriya and Chip just might not simply have the will to live anymore,” Doctor Suzuki’s voice is soft. “From what I’ve heard, even before the villain attack and being kidnapped these two haven’t exactly had the nicest of lives and believe you to be dead. They are heavily reliant on your presence. Their minds are shutting off on their own because they don’t want to be alive anymore. It is just a speculation but they’ve probably lost their will to breathe.”

Shouta’s heart falls to his feet. “B- but the body won’t stop working simply because they don’t want it to, right?” he pressed. “Right?!” Doctor Suzuki nods. “Of course not. Our machines will keep them alive as long as they are attached but that won’t change if they choose to wake up or not and even if they do, if that is truly the reason then it would be a more dissociative state.”

“And if you take them off of the machines?” Shouta asks carefully.

“Unless they wake up on their own, without our machines Midoriya and Chip will die. Though in extreme cases even the devices won’t work. It is just air and nutrients after all. If they refuse to continue breathing then, well, again, they’ll die.”

Shouta feels numb.

“I’m no psychologist, Aizawa,” Doctor Suzuki continues, “but I have been working in the emergency ward for many years now. I’ve seen so many terminally ill patients either shut off like this until they pass, pull the plug themselves, or commit suicide more than I’d like to remember. At some point, no matter how resilient a person may be, there has to be a breaking point and, well, you ‘dying’ in front of their eyes whether you are alive right now or not might have very well have been the metaphorical plug to be pulled for them.” Doctor Suzuki moves to the door. “We won’t turn off the machines until you as their legal guardian says so or you can no longer pay for their medical support but if they are like this for that reason are they truly living?” Shouta hangs his head. “I’ll leave you with them. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.”

The door shut after Doctor Suzuki.

“Shouta,” Nemuri whispered after a moment of silence, “we have to go set up for the students.” The raven-haired man tried and failed to swallow his tears. “I- I know.” Shouta had come over right after he got his memories back. He didn’t even think about his other obligations. “J- just a few m- more seconds,” he whispered. “Just…” Shouta gently caressed Izuku’s face. “Just a f- few more…”

____________________________

The students came back to the dorms one by one, slowly but surely. The absence of Asui was well noted. Uraraka looked the worse which made sense. She was the one who held Asui in her hands as she was dying. Hitoshi sat down beside Todoroki on one of the couches. His chest was still bandaged from his broken ribs. Todoroki was still covered from shoulder down in bandages but was out of the hospital. Bakugou and Kaminari were here too but still two of their classmates were missing. One was dead and the other they knew nothing about but they didn’t have any hope for them to be well and judging by the bags under Shouta’s eyes as he walked in through the door that led to the hallway leading to his house, Izuku probably wasn’t doing so hot. Everyone else was sporting some kind of wound too. They were all mentally and emotionally and physically exhausted. This year has been simply terrible.

“Welcome back,” Shouta greeted. A few turned to the man but many just kept their heads down. “Honestly, I don’t know what to say. I guess that I am proud of you for going through everything you’ve been through and that I am sorry for your loss. Asui’s parents have invited all of you to her funeral. They told me when I visited her house yesterday that Asui had not been happier before her time at UA and her time with all of you were some of her most joyful.” Uraraka choked on a sob. “I will give you the details on her funeral as soon as they are available.” Shouta gave Uraraka a moment to calm down before finishing. “We are implementing a full time buddy system once again. Unless you are in the dorms, no matter where you go off or on campus you must have a buddy with you. You can choose a set one if you’d like or just if someone is there when the time presents itself for you to need to go somewhere to take that person along. To leave campus you must get it approved by me. Curfew is still ten o’clock. I will be contacting you all privately about mandatory counselling. The school will pay for that of course. That is all, I guess. Sorry, I don’t have any happy words to give you aside from the League of Villains having been disbanded.”

Kirishima, bless his heart, tried his hardest to smile up at their sensei. “Don’t worry about it, sensei. It’s a down day for everyone.”

Shouta hummed. “Yeah… Well, tomorrow you start back at school but it will probably be a light week so feel free to stay up I guess. I will either be at the hospital, in the bunker, or at home so if you need me just call.” He turned around and walked away, a slouch in his shoulders. Hitoshi just had to know how Izuku was doing. Shouta didn’t mention him at all. He stood up preparing to follow the man but Shouta must have known he would do that. The raven-haired man stopped and looked over his shoulder. They met eyes, black to violet. Shouta pulled out his phone and sent Hitoshi a message before walking away.

* **Ding Ding** *

  
  


**Hobo Teacher** :

They’re alive.

  
  


And that was all he sent. Hitoshi felt there was probably a lot more to that statement. He sat numbly. No one had the gaul to ask their teacher about his son either. The class just sat in silence until finally one broke. It was Uraraka. She cried and when she cried Ashido cried and when Ashido cried Kaminari tried and failed to hold it together and then in a chain reaction, the whole of Class 1-A was crying. Even Todoroki and Hitoshi. They turned their heads away to hide their faces from view. Bakugou even was pressing the heels of his hands to his eyes. It was a sad, sad day for Class 1-A.

Not only for them but Class 1-B had lost not one but two classmates in the fight. The sun was not shining on the UA campus that day.

While they didn’t have set buddies for the buddy system everyone pretty much had chosen a go to person. Hitoshi decided that until Izuku and Chip were back it would probably be Todoroki for him. They sort of just fell into the habit during the training camp. Still, in the quiet loneliness of his dorm room, HItoshi felt restless. He was bored, tired, and sad. The purple-haired boy rolled over in bed and took his phone off of the charger. He pulled up the messages application.

  
  


**Hitoshi** :

Skipping school today huh?

…

…

… 

**Hitoshi** :

Flunkie.

…

…

…

Hitoshi waited and waited and waited until eventually the phone slipped from his hands and he fell asleep.

____________________________

* **Ding Ding** *

- _ New Message from Hitoshi _ -

The light of the phone briefly lit up the dark hospital room before it went off leaving the messages unchecked and so the sound of the heart monitor drew deep into the night.

* **beep** …  **beep** …  **beep** …*

____________________________

Shouta sighed as he slouched in the hospital room chair. It had been nearly a week since he had gotten his memories back. School was rough. His students were trying really hard to stay positive but it was taxing on all of them. With Asui’s funeral today they took the day off to go to it as a class. Shouta felt so guilty. He was their teacher and a professional hero. It was his job to protect them! Ha… He hasn’t been able to protect his students even once this year.

* **beep** …  **beep** …  **beep** …*

The USJ. Wasn’t that just a wonderful surprise. The League of Villains attacked, and Shouta could barely do a thing but get pummeled by that Nomu.

* **beep** ……  **beep** ……  **beep** ……*

Whatever the hell happened with Mr. Midoriya and Izuku. Shouta knows that wasn’t his fault directly and he couldn’t really step in at that point but it still felt like a burden on his heart.

* **beep** ………  **beep** ……… **beep** ………*

The training camp. So many were injured and Izuku and Chip got kidnapped and the villains turned Izuku into some janky pokemon-human hybrid. 

* **beep** …………  **beep** …………  **beep** …………*

And now this attack on Lumiose City. Asui freaking died! Izuku and Chip minus well be! Two students from Class 1-B died too! Shouta pressed his hands to his eyes. What they hell were they doing?! How could they call themselves heroes if-

* **beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee** -*

Shouta’s eyes blew open. Izuku’s heart monitor. And then Chip’s-

* **beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee** -*

The raven-haired man jumped from his seat.  _ NononononoNO! _ “IZUKU! CHIP!” He reached over and shook the boy’s shoulder. Shouta pressed his ear against Izuku’s chest. Nothing… Nothing! Nothing but that dang-

* **beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee** -*

The doors to the room slammed open. Shouta looked over his shoulder with tears in his eyes. Doctor Suzuki and a gaggle of nurses ran in. “Th- they’re- Doctor, they-” Shouta was dragged back to the back of the room. He could only stare in shock as the doctors and nurses tried to resuscitate his sons. “Get the defibrillator!” one shouted. The shock pads were placed on either side of Izuku’s chest and were the same for Chip as he was flipped over onto his back.  _ Please no… _ “Three! Two! One!” * **BAM** * Izuku’s body jolted as the electrical current pulsed through it.

* **beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee** -*  _ Please! God, please! _ “Three! Two! One!* * **BAM** * * **beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee** -*  _ Not them! Anything but them! PLEASE!  _ “Three! Two! One!” * **BAM** * * **beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee** -* Tears fell from Shouta’s eyes. The doctors stopped. The nurses stopped.  _ Please… _ Despair welled in Shouta’s chest as Doctor Suzuki looked over his shoulder sadly at Shouta and uttered those forsaken words. “I’m sorry, Aizawa… They’re-”

“ **NO!** ” Shouta screeched. “They aren’t dead! Do it again!” “Aiza-” “AGAIN! FREAKING DO IT AGAIN!” Doctor Suzuki shook his head. “I know it’s hard to accept but-” Shouta stormed forward. He grabbed Doctor Suzuki by his tie and spun the man around, throwing him to the back of the room. The nurses tried to stop him. Shouta couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t think straight. He couldn’t hear the yells from the hospital staff, only that constant, irritating,  _ lying _ -

* **beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee** -*

Shouta ripped his pokeballs from his belts and released all five pokemon from them. “Absol!” “Umbreon!” “Ssssseviper!” “Houndoom!” “Poochyena!” Shouta glared through the gap in Smokey’s horns. “Keep them the hell away from my sons!” Shouta pressed the defibrillator pads to Izuku’s chests. * **BAM** * “Someone call security!” Doctor Suzuki yelled. “Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! SHUT UP!” * **BAM** *

“ **MY SONS ARE NOT DEAD!!!** ”

____________________________

Viridian eyes slowly opened to a void of white. Below his feet was a lake as clear as glass that rippled with every step he took on it. Izuku looked over to the sound of approaching footsteps. Toward him walked what looked like to be a pokemon. It was tall and daunting with a head that was long with a point at the end and two white horns connected to its jaw. It was white with a grey underbelly and its eyes were green. Around its waist was a golden ring that jutted out to look to have two wings on either side. It looked majestic.

“You’ve been here for a long time, child,” Izuku was stunned when the creature spoke to him. He frowned. “Who are you?” “I am Arceus,” the pokemon replied. “Are you god?” Izuku asked. Arceus hummed. “Some consider me to be so.”

Izuku looked down. “So I’m dead then…” Arceus shook his head. “Not quite. This,” Arceus lifts one of his four pointed feet and gestures to the void, “is the middle ground where lost souls near death go. Tell me, why are you here?” Izuku furrowed his eyebrows. “I was hurt?” Arceus shook his head. “That is true but that is not the reason you are here, is it. You are reluctant to go back.”

Izuku bit his tongue. He attempted to glare at the ground but found it fruitless. Arceus was right. After all, what was the point now? Izuku was just so tired of everything. At this point he would rather be dead than alive even if it meant wandering this endless void forever.

“Your thoughts reach me, child,” Arceus says. Izuku stiffens. “Walk with me.” Izuku wasn’t one for authority but you don’t simply deny a direct order from God do you? The two walked side by side. Izuku felt his feet dragging. He felt tired. Lost. Void of emotions. He just wanted to stop. “I sense a great sorrow in you, child,” Arceus stated.  _ Oh really? What gave that away? _ “You are hurting deeply though you are in denial of your feelings. The world has not been kind to you. Too young were you for its harsh ways.”

Izuku huffed. “You are God, or like a god, right? You saw what happened so why are you asking about this now?”

Arceus nodded. He lifted his foot and from the tip dripped a single clear drop of water. It landed in the clear lake below and in a flash of light and ripple of water, the lake changed. Izuku’s green eyes were blown wide. Before him stood the world as though a view from space. It was so… beautiful. “You are correct,” Arceus stated. “I see everything. From the flying pokemon in the sky,” it changed to a few Fletchinder soaring through the air, “to the water types in the sea.” It changed again to show the Magicarp in the ocean. “I even see the humans that roam and live in companionship with the pokemon.” Izuku watched as children all over the globe made their bonds with their pokemon. It made him reflect on his own time of bonding with Chip. “I see all that happens below the sun and under the moon and stars.”

Izuku felt a bit of anger well in him. “If you saw it all then why did you let everything that happened to me happen?” Arceus sighed. “I gave the humans and the pokemon their own free will. I did not think corruption would sink so far into the roots. I did hear your cries, child. I heard your pleas and your longing for love,” Izuku flinched, “and so I sent you a guardian angel.” Izuku looked up at the pokemon. Another drip of water fell from Arceus’ foot. He watched the picture change.

“Aizawa Shouta,” Arceus stated. Tears welled in Izuku’s eyes. It was a scene from years back. Way back in Vaniville Town, just as Dad was leaving.

\-----

_ ‘I’ll make you a deal, Midoriya, Chip. You are twelve, right? So in two maybe three years you will probably be old enough to take the UA Trainer’s Academy entrance exam. It’s a three hour commute there and another three back, I know, but if you master that impossible ability of yours I will put in a recommendation for you to take the recommendation exam.’ _

\-----

“That man had suffered a great deal,” Arceus mused. “His heart had frozen over by the world.” Izuku watched as the scene shifted to a young boy, very obviously Dad when he was younger, leaning over a hospital bed. A man with dark brown hair lay in it and the sound of a heart monitor flatlining rang in the background. It changed again to a slightly older version of Dad in a UA uniform.

\-----

_ ‘Shouta, Shirakumo is-’ _

\-----

“Oh? This is when I died!”

Izuku practically jumped out of his skin. He swung around and met eyes with a tan boy with gravity defying hair that was a mix of blue and white. “Who are-” “Shirakumo Oboro, at your service!” Shirakumo gave a mock salute. When he let it down though, his smile turned melancholy. He redirected his attention to the view. “I was your father’s and Yamada’s best friend back in high school. I died though in a villain attack.”

Izuku furrowed his eyebrows. “I thought this was a middle ground before death.” Arceus nodded. “It is.” The scene changed. “Kurogiri?’ Izuku asked. “He’s from the League.” Shirakumo nodded. “They took my body and made that. I’ve been here a long, long time…”

“Events like these hardened the heart of Aizawa Shouta,” Arceus stated. “He was lost much like you, child. Around those times, he was contemplating joining me up here early and so I sent him a guardian angel as well: You.” Izuku looked down sadly as a scene of him and Dad joking around played. He hung his head, shoulders shaking. “Why are you showing me this?” he whispered. Izuku crouched down trying to touch the scene. Tears filled his eyes. “Why…?” he jerked his head up and stood sharply, storming up to Arceus. “If you said he was my guardian angel then why did you let him die?!” Izuku fell to his knees, weak as he cried. “Why?” he mumbled. “I can’t- Without him- I don’t want to do this anymore! It hurts! Everything hurts! Just kill me already!”

Izuku felt a sudden warmth over his body soon taken over by cold. He looked down at his hands to see them fading.

“I’m afraid you are already doing that to yourself,” Arceus almost sounded sad. The scene below Izuku changed.

\-----

_ Dad was sitting by what looked like Izuku’s body holding him tightly. ‘GET AWAY FROM HIM!’ Dad screamed. Doctors and nurses surround them. Umbreon and the others fended them off. ‘He’s alive! Izuku, wake up! Wake up, Izuku! IZUKU!’ _

\-----

“Wh- what? When was this?” His body continued to grow colder and colder.

“ **This is the present time** ,” Arceus stated. Izuku’s head jolted up. “Aizawa Shouta never died. You still need him and he,” Arceus nodded to the scene, “still needs you, child.” Izuku’s heart fell. He looked back down. Tears fell harder from his eyes. “I- I saw him die! He’s- this isn’t- Dad is-” Izuku tried to place his hands to the water but they were gone. He screeched and reeled back. “I am afraid your time is already up, child,” Arceus sighed. Izuku whipped around to him. “W- wait! N- no! Dad is- He! I have to go to him! Please!” Izuku fell on his side as his left leg suddenly disappeared beneath him. Izuku squeezed his eyes shut.

“ **I DON’T WANT TO DIE!!!** ” he screamed.

Izuku’s eyes squeezed shut. He felt a rush of warmth take over him. Daring to dare, Izuku peaked one eye open. He could see his hands and leg again. Izuku looked fully up at Arceus. The pokemon didn’t really have a mouth that Izuku could see but his eyes seemed to be smiling. “I am glad you feel that way. Truly I apologize to you, child, for your harsh life. Go now to your father,” Arceus tapped his own forehead to Izuku’s. “Go and live in peace. Now, I must go to your pokemon. He seems a bit lost on his own right now.”

Light spread around him almost blindingly so. “Izuku,” Shirakumo waved to him, fading out of his vision, “when you see Shouta again, can you please tell him-”

____________________________

* **beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee** \-  **beep** *

Everyone in the room froze. Shouta swears his heart skipped a beat. He looks down at the boy in his arms. * **beep** ... **beep** …  **beep** …* Izuku takes a large, shuddering breath, holding it for a second before his chest falls again. * **beeeeeeeeee** \-  **beep** * Shouta’s head swings over to Chip. The Eevee also takes a long breath.

“ **D** \-  **ad…?** ” Shouta looks down in shock to see half lidded green eyes staring up at him. It’s like the world comes to a stand still. “Izuku…” he breathes out.

* **beep** ...……  **beep** ………*

“His hearts getting weaker again,” Doctor Suzuki shouts. “We can’t lose them again!” Shouta is torn from his son but at this point he doesn’t mind. As the doctors and nurses work together and stabilize Izuku’s and Chip’s hearts Shouta falls to his knees with only one thing on his mind:

_ They’re alive... MY SONS ARE ALIVE! _


	29. Family Vacation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Aizawa's go on a family vacation!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone doing?
> 
> Here is a longer chapter in return for the shorter chapters before and a little bit of fluff for everything I've put y'all through up until now!

“Oh…” Izuku watched as Doctor Suzuki sawed off the cast on his left leg. “S- so she’s dead…?” Dad, who he was leaning against on the hospital cot, nodded sadly. “Asui’s funeral was a couple of days ago. Her pokemon are being taken care of by her family now.” The first cast came off and Doctor Suzuki moved to the next one. Dad looks down at Izuku’s blank face. “You know it isn’t your fault, right?” The other cast came off. Izuku didn’t respond to his father. _How was it not my fault? The villains were after me, not them. Over and over and over again… Inha, Mrs. Midoriya, my classmates… I couldn’t protect anyone… I’m just used as a weapon against them…_ _‘Not my fault?’ Yes it was… It was completely my fault._

Dad lightly flicked his forehead. “Stop that. I know what you are thinking.” Doctor Suzuki took Izuku’s free hand carefully and began to unwrap it. “It is very much  _ not _ your fault that villains think your life is theirs for the taking. Everything was just a byproduct of their greed. You classmates don’t blame you. Asui’s parents don’t blame you. We don’t blame you. It isn’t your fault.”

“Other,” Doctor Suzuki held out his hand. Izuku swallowed a sigh and removed his right hand from Dad’s arm, giving it to the doctor. Doctor Suzuki was doing a great job at feigning ignorance to the conversation as Dad caught Izuku and Chip up on the last two and a half months of their lives. A lot happened apparently.

“There you go, Izuku!” Doctor Suzuki chirped. He learned pretty quickly when the greenette woke up to not call him by his last name. Izuku examined his limbs. He could barely move his legs. They shook badly when he tried to lift them. They looked weird… On his legs, below his knees, where the new flesh was added it was a bunch of different colors. They didn’t exactly have the option of picking and choosing body parts you know? It was basically just the front of his left leg and most of his right leg save for a few patches here and there. Mixes of all colors. Sickly pale, soft tan, deep tan, dark. Around all of the patches of different skin were scar marks of them being sown together and onto his original leg below the knee.

Izuku lifted his hand, turning them to examine them. They were normal aside from the fingertips which had a sickly gray hue to them now. Izuku sighed and laid his head back on Dad’s shoulder. “Are you alright?” Dad asked. The boy hummed. “I don’t care,” he mumbled. Izuku pressed his face to Dad’s arm. “Just as long as you’re here…”

Doctor Suzuki sat on the side of the bed. He reached over and pat Chip’s head. Chip was laying next to Izuku. The two had gotten pretty close as Chip was lucid for the entire time Izuku was drugged up on pain medication. “Well you are free to go. Aren’t you glad to not have to be in a hospital anymore?” Izuku nodded. “I’ve already sent a referral over to the Lumiose City Physical Rehabilitation Center-”  _ that’s a mouthful _ “- so once you leave just head over there and they will get you two started on physical therapy, alright?” Izuku nodded again. Chip’s paws or legs weren’t necessarily damaged but he was notably weaker when walking because of the bone deterioration. Dad offered a hand to Doctor Suzuki who took and shook it. “Thank you again for everything you have done. We must have you and your wife over for dinner sometime.” “Th- thank you…” Izuku murmured. Doctor Suzuki isn’t a bad man, he’s decided. “Vee!” The doctor grinned. “It is simply my job.”

He walks over to the door and wheeled over a wheelchair. Resting across the arm rests were a couple of forearm crutches, the type where you slide you arm through a hole that fastens around your forearm while you hold onto the pole that just out. “I personally wouldn’t recommend using these right now,” Doctor Suzuki says, “but if you absolutely must stand for something like using the bathroom or switching seats, these are sort of like the cane version of crutches. Your physical therapist will walk you through everything in regards to that matter. I think that is all.”

Dad slid out of bed. Izuku doesn’t register lurching forward and snagging the raven-haired man’s arm. Dad looked over his shoulder and met Izuku’s fearful green eyes.  _ Where are you going? Don’t leave me. Don’t leave me! _ Dad took a sharp breath. “I am just helping you get into the chair. I’m not going anywhere,” he promised. Izuku hung his head.  _ Don’t leave… _ He couldn’t explain the fear that shook him at the thought of Dad not even being in his general vicinity.

\-----

_ ‘Dad? Dad, i- it’s time to wake up.’ _

_ \----- _

He needed to know Dad was alive. He needed to see him walking, hear him breathing, feel his heart beating. 

It felt strange to be leaving the hospital. Like, he knows he was supposed to not so long ago before  _ another _ villain attack and he only remembered about half of his drugged up time though the other half was still wobbly and didn’t understand what was going on or where he was or anything but still. Izuku feels like he’s made a small little cubby hole in this hospital. He knows a few of the nurses and Doctor Suzuki and they even began to make jokes about the “Izuku room” as they had for a time brought over a lot of his belongings from his room to make it feel more homey. Nevertheless, Izuku was glad to be leaving. He didn’t like hospitals. They reminded him of the fear of going to the nurses office and Mr. Midoriya maybe finding out that he had let it slip he was hurt. They reminded him of the laboratory he and Chip were tested in. Izuku  _ hates _ hospitals.

So when they pulled away in Dad’s car with Doctor Suzuki and the nurses sending him off outside, Izuku truly hoped as he waved goodbye he would not have to be returning to this hospital anytime soon.

They made their way to the Lumiose City Physical Rehabilitation Center where Izuku and Chip met- “Hello! Hello! You must be Izuku and Chip!” - Doctor Morita, a woman with short blue hair and… she was missing her left leg. It was replaced with a prosthetic. “I’ve gotten the referral from Lumiose City Emergency Care. I will be the one taking care of you in your journey to walking freely again!” She held out her hand. Izuku leaned back in his chair. Chip audibly growled. She slowly, scaredly, retracted it.

Dad sighed. “Forgive them. They haven’t had the prettiest run-ins with adults, or humans in general.” Izuku huffed.  _ Well that’s putting it lightly. _ Doctor Morita nodded. “Alrighty! That’s fine! Well then, shall we set up a schedule for you? Follow me, please.”

Izuku looked back over his shoulder at the front doors of the center as Dad wheeled him further in. He sighed and turned forward.  _ Great. Just a new type of hospital now. _

In the end, Izuku and Chip would be coming in every other day for two hours after school which Dad was suspiciously quiet around that topic. Izuku would have to press later. For now, all Izuku and Chip wanted was to go home.

____________________________

“We have to make one last stop before going home.” Shouta heard a long, tired sigh from Izuku. He glanced over from the road as they drove back to the school. Izuku and Chip hadn’t stopped looking out of them. Shouta knew by the look in their eyes that they were looking for any signs of danger. Paranoid and rightfully so.

“Do you remember the raid on the Yakuza that I told you about? The one to save that little girl?” Izuku hummed, turning to face him. Shouta hated how scarily dull those green eyes were. “Well we’ve had her in the underground bunker, the safe place we were going to move you two. I’ve been visiting with her daily because she can’t control her quirk and, well, you know mine. Erasing it until she can is my job.”

Shouta saw Izuku scowl out of the corner of his eye. He forced himself to keep calm.

\-----

_ ‘So a bit of an issue,’ Shouta called Nedzu from in the bathroom. He had to whisper because it was the only place he could go alone but Izuku was still sitting in his wheelchair outside of it. ‘Izuku and Chip are, well, I can’t really leave them without them having an anxiety attack.’ _

_ ‘I thought this would happen,’ Nedzu mused. ‘Naturally after everything that has happened they would be a bit clingy. That is fine. Bring them to the bunker with you.’ _

_ ‘What about Eri?’ _

_ ‘Let’s say this is a trail run,’ the pokemon principal stated. ‘Eri isn’t much younger than Midoriya Inha. I would like to see how he acts around her. From what Cementoss has told me, Midoriya has begun to question about her brother. At some point she needs some peace of mind too. Either way, I think it will be fine once you get there.’ _

_ ‘What is that supposed to mean?’ _

_ ‘You’ll understand shortly.’ _

\-----

“Don’t worry, she isn’t going to be living with us,” Shouta reassured his sons. “But she needs a little help too, just like you.” Shouta scanned his ID card and the entrance to the tunnel opened and they drove in. “Eri was abused by adults as well. By villains no less. She had her body torn apart and rebuilt by Overhaul’s quirk so many times to make that bullet. I’m sure you can imagine that it made her pretty timid of people.”

They stopped the car. Shouta turned to Izuku and Chip. “I’m not asking you to like her but please be nice. She needs all the  _ love _ she can get.” It was like that word flipped a switch in their minds. Shouta saw the way their faces softened just a bit. Izuku and Chip had only just begun realizing the importance of having love in their lives. Now that they have experienced it and had it almost ripped away from them via Shouta dying but not really dying, they know how bad it hurts to feel unloved. The pain they felt for many, many years. Izuku wouldn’t wish that pain on anybody.

Shouta got out the wheelchair and helped Izuku into it. Chip curled up on the boy’s lap. “I promise that she isn’t going to take me away from you two,” he added as he wheeled them towards the curtains. He knew that is what they were thinking. The closer they got the more voices they heard.  _ Strange. The most that should be down here are the guarding heroes, Mirio, and Eri? _ Of course, Shouta didn’t voice that. He didn’t want Izuku and Chip to be anymore tense than what they are. 

“Eri!” he called. He stopped outside of the curtain. “It’s Eraserhead.” “Ah!” Mirio’s voice. Footsteps. Izuku and Chip tensed up. The curtains opened to the blonde teen. “Eraserhead! Eri, look who it is!” The white-haired girl leaned over a bit to see them from her position. Her red eyes landed on him and then… “Wh- who are they?” Mirio looked down. “OH!” Izuku and Chip flinched back.

Two people Shouta had never met before walked up. “Mirio,” the man who looked scarily like Mirio slapped the blonde on the shoulder, “don’t scare them.” It clicked. “You must be Mr. and Mrs. Togata.” 

“That is correct!” Principal Nedzu walked up with a… butterfly hair clip on his right ear. “Izuku, Chip, it is good to see you two finally out of the hospital. Come in, come in! We have much to talk about!”

To be fair, Izuku and Chip were doing a pretty good job at not lashing out at anyone. Shouta was so proud. He held them down to sit by him as they all gathered in a circle on the floor.

“I am Togata Yua,” Mrs. Togata stated. She had a short blonde bob. “I’m Togata Fuji,” Mr. Togata was terrifyingly similar to his son. It sent shivers down Shouta’s spine. Shouta bowed. He gestured to himself and then his sons. “I am Aizawa Shouta, professional hero Eraserhead. These are my sons Izuku and Chip.” No one questioned why he claimed Chip, a pokemon, as his son. Shouta turned to Eri. “These are the ones I was talking about who were going to be coming here.”

Innocent red eyes blinked. “The boy who was hurting too?” Izuku’s fist gripped his pants. Shouta smiled sadly. “Yeah.” Izuku had the manners to at least look up at her though Shouta knows it is only to appease him. However when those red eyes met those green eyes and the same fear and paranoia and  _ pain _ was mirrored in each, Shouta could feel Izuku’s heart melting. The greenette raised his hand and offered a small wave. Eri shyly waved back. Shouta pat Izuku’s shoulder. “Why don’t you kids go play or something?” He met eyes with Mirio. The blonde nodded sharply. Izuku’s and Chip’s panicked faces turned to him. Shouta ruffled his hair. “You will just be in the corner. Same room. I will be right here, I promise.” He helped Izuku back into the wheelchair. “I think it will do you some good to just be a kid again. It’s been a while since you’ve smiled.” Izuku and Chip had nothing to respond to that. Mirio wheeled them over to the corner, Eri following.

Nedzu cleared his throat. “Ehem, well we were just discussing the prospect of the Togata’s adopting Eri.” Shouta’s head snapped up. “Eri has been doing well around Mirio and hasn’t had a single accident when he is around. Of course, we will still need you to check up on her, Eraserhead, but with the threat gone we don’t want her to have to stay down here. She is young enough that she can start anew with life. Giving her a family and home and a chance at a normal life is the least we can do.”

“Mirio is so fond of that girl,” Mrs. Togata mused. “He has been living with us since he lost his quirk and is now taking a break from the hero course. We get about an earful every night about her. We practically already know everything about her by now.”

“I heard what you said to your son just now,” Mr. Togata said. “About him not smiling in a while. Mirio has been similar. He pulls up a good front but losing his quirk has been hard on him. I know he doesn’t regret it because it saved that girl but it still isn’t easy. But when he talks about his time with her here he lights up! Like you said, it is good to see a smile on his face when the rest of his has been so fake recently. It would make us happy to take her in. We know you are close to her though so we were wondering what you thought.”

Shouta looked over at the kids in the corner. Mirio had taught Eri how to play with dolls. He was trying to teach Izuku and Chip too with a high, squeaky voice but Izuku is 15, a boy, and the definition of depression at this point. Still, between attempting to ‘play dolls’ by moving them around whenever Eri or Mirio’s dolls ‘spoke’ to his, Izuku would steal glances over at Shouta. The man’s heart twisted.

“I think… that is a wonderful idea, honestly,” he said, sad eyes resting on his son. “I hate to say it but I would hate for Eri to turn out the same as Izuku. About twenty too many things have gone wrong in that boy’s life. The effects can’t be reversed and as Nedzu said, if Eri has a chance to start anew then it would be for the best for her. Chances like that don’t come along for everyone…”

So that is what was decided. The school would help pay for Eri’s belongings such as a wardrobe, furniture, etc. She would be leaving the bunker tomorrow and they would start getting the adoption forms ready and the legalities out of the way.

“Aizawa,” Nedzu stopped him before he could call out to Izuku, “today go home and rest. Get them settled down again. But tomorrow we are going to have a meeting.” Not a request. “I will have a teacher take over your homeroom. Just come see me with Izuku and Chip in the morning, alright?” Shouta nodded. Nedzu pat his leg. “I’m glad to see him interacting with Eri well. Maybe soon we will be able to reintroduce Midoriya back into his life. I will see you tomorrow, Aizawa.” Nedzu left.

Shouta walked over to where the Togata’s were sitting with Eri and Izuku. “Are you ready to go?” he crouched by his son, petting Chip gently. Izuku looked up and nodded. He looked stressed. “Alright.” Shouta turned to the Togata’s. “Thank you for taking her in. We’ll be taking our leave now.” Shouta helped Izuku back up into the chair. Shouta has to wonder how Mirio was able to get him out without Izuku lashing out. 

“Ah-!” Eri reached out and grabbed Izuku’s pant leg before Shouta could wheel him away. Izuku flinched and the girl let go. “Eri?” Shouta looked down. Eri wrung her hands together. “Y- you’ll come back, right, I- Izuku? A- and play dolls a- again?” The greenette took a shaky breath. He examined the girl in front of him. Shouta knew he was thinking about Midoriya. About the way her presence took away Mrs. Midoriya’s presence. About the resentment he held for her. Izuku finally  _ nodded _ .

“I- I’ll be back,” he agreed. Because over all of that he sees himself in that girl and Izuku knows that this time, maybe just this once, he can protect her from becoming like him.

____________________________

Izuku is wheeled up the kind of bumpy brick path to the Class 1-A dormitory. Dad takes a left to a small sidewalk that breaks off of it that leads to the front of their house. Dad had already explained how the whole housing system would work. Much to Izuku’s surprise, their house looked the exact same as the one at the edge of Lumiose City they lived in before the dorming system was put in place. “I requested that from Cementoss,” Dad stated. He unlocked the door and pushed them in. Izuku took a deep breath.

“I’m home,” he whispered to the quiet house. It was nice to be back. A head popped out of the hallway. “Well you gotta say it louder than that,” a very familiar woman huffed. “I barely heard you.” Izuku blinked. “Grandma…” he breathed out. And then he blushed. He hadn’t meant to call her that out loud. The black-haired woman smirked. “What? My grandsons got hurt and you think I wouldn’t come to visit?” She strolled over and knelt by him. “Now say it properly.”

Izuku couldn’t help the small smile that formed on his face. “I’m home,” he said louder. Arms wrapped around him from both sides. “Welcome back,” Dad murmured and just like that the dam that had been suppressing all of his emotions since the hospital broke. Izuku and Chip just sat there and cried in the arms of those who  _ loved _ them.

Everything just hurt so much. He was sad and scared and worried and grieving and hurt and the only thing he wanted to do was curl up in a ball and cry. It was all just so much! And yet through all of that though all of the pain and turmoil, Izuku found love and this, just being in the arms of his family, this he thinks is enough for now. It may hurt. He might not ever be able to smile fully again. He may never fully heal but as long as he has this Izuku thinks it will be okay. So for now he will cry and for once in his life accept the love that he has been given.

It takes a bit for him to fully calm down. Neither Dad nor Grandma let him go until the sniffling finally stops. “S-” “Don’t apologize,” Grandma stops him. “Sometimes you need a good cry.” She stands. “Why don’t you go unpack and I’ll start on dinner?” Izuku looks up at Dad. “Unpack?” “You’ll see. First,” Dad lets out all of the pokemon, “they’ve been dying to see you again.”

Viridian and rainbow eyes widen. “Smokey! Pepper!” He almost falls out of his seat to hold them. “Houndoom!” “Yena!” Chip squeals when Pepper jumps on Izuku’s lap beside him. Smokey rubs his face against Izuku’s. Izuku lets out a soft chuckle. “I missed you guys too.”

“Umbreon.” Izuku looks up. Umbreon, Absol, and Seviper stand waiting. Izuku holds out his arms. “You too, guys.” And they joined the fray. Tears pricked at Izuku’s eyes once more.  _ I’m home… _ Eventually Dad does wheel Izuku to his room. Izuku lifts his fist to the door before pausing. “Izuku?” Dad questions. The greenette furrows his eyebrows. He tries to move his foot to the rhythm of him knocking but it’s hard. “Maybe,” Dad muses, “this is a good time to stop that habit?” Izuku’s hand twitches. “Or… maybe not…” Something just feels off if he doesn’t do it. It’s like his safe room isn’t his safe room anymore. That’s why he originally started doing it. He  _ needed _ to do it. It  _ had _ to be done or it wasn’t an  _ okay _ room anymore. For now though he would settle for just knocking and not tapping his foot.

* **knock knock knock** *

Izuku opened the door. It was just like before he left for the training camp. Well mostly. “What is that?” he pointed in. In the middle of the room was a massive pile of what looked like presents…? Dad hums. “We had a Christmas party in the hospital. Those were all your gifts from your classmates.” Izuku narrowed his eyes. “We did?” “You did.”  _ Dang, I don’t remember that at all. _ “I’ve got some work to do. Why don’t you unwrap all of those, alright?” Izuku’s heart dropped. He twisted in his seat to look fully at his father. Dad ruffled his hair. “I’ll be right down the hall, I promise. If you need me I will be here in the snap of a finger, okay?”  _ OKAY. OkAy. Okay… Dad is… _ Izuku grabbed the man’s hand.

“Izuku, Chip,” Dad rounded the wheelchair to crouch in front of them, “you are safe in this house. I won’t leave it without you. Has anything ever happened at home?” The greenette and Eevee shook their heads. “And it won’t. I won’t let anything happen. This is your safe place. I’m in it at all times, alright?” He changed the word. Izuku swallowed thickly. “P- promise you won’t leave?” Dad nodded. “I won’t leave.” Izuku looked down. “Okay…” With a little hair ruffle, Dad went to his office to work. Izuku let out a shaky breath. He used his hands to push the wheels of the wheelchair forward before he felt a little nudge. Smokey pressed his horns against the back and pushed him forward. Izuku huffed. “Someone’s a worry wart.” They stopped before the pile of presents. Izuku took one of the crutches and laid it beside the wheelchair and then used the other to hold himself up while he lowered himself to the ground. He had some mobility in his legs. They just felt really weird, really shaky, and really foreign to his body. The boy picked up a blue-wrapped box. 

“I didn’t expect this to be what I did when I got home,” he muses as he unwraps it. “Back in the basement it was so different…” 

\-----

_ ‘You ready for your presents, mutt?’ flames liked at Mr. Midoriya’s mouth. _

_ \----- _

“I guess this isn’t really Christmas though,” Izuku shivered. “Not Christmas…” No one knew it but Izuku  _ hates _ Christmas. Mr. Midoriya seemed to enjoy it a little too much for his tastes.

It was a shoe box. Izuku took off the top to reveal a galaxy-themed bandanna with the name ‘CHIP’ taped to it. Izuku turned to the Eevee. “For you,” he tied it around Chip’s neck. There were three more. One for him, Pepper, and Smokey. Underneath Izuku found galaxy themed sneakers. “They got my size right… Who…?”

Izuku took out his phone.

____________________________

* **Ding Ding** * Hitoshi picked up his phone. It was from the Class 1-A group chat from…  _ IZUKU?! _ Hitoshi dropped his game system in his other hand and immediately opened up the chat.

  
  


**BEST CLASS (1-A)!!!:**

**Izuku:** _< insert picture of galaxy shoes>_

  
  


\- Hitoshi blinked. “That’s the first thing he sends???” -

  
  


**PINKY:** Those are from me!

**Izuku:** Thank you, Ashido.

**PINKY:** No problem! Hope I got the size right!

**Izuku:** _ <insert picture of Cheese Club gift card> _

**SparklyAoyama:** That would be from moi.

**Izuku:** Thank you, Aoyama.

**Izuku:** _ <insert picture of designer glasses case> _

  
  


\- Hitoshi left his dorm room. To his left Kaminari was leaving his also holding his phone. They silently made their way to the first floor commons where lo and behold all of the other students were slowly gathering looking at their phones. * **Ding Ding** * “Ah!” Iida piped. “That was from me!” -

  
  


**Prez:** That one was from me.

**Izuku:** Thank you, Iida.

**Izuku:** _ <insert picture of a book> _

  
  


\- “That’s mine,” Uraraka hummed, tapping her announcement. And that was how it went. They hadn’t heard from him in so long that no one knew what was going on. They just knew that Izuku was alive. Now with this they knew he was at home because despite Shouta originally not wanting the help moving in they ended up helping anyways and they all took turns placing their respect present back in his room. What did that mean? Hitoshi looked over his shoulder down the hall. That meant that Izuku was just a knock away.  _ Why didn’t he come over himself? _

Notebooks from Bakugou, a beaning from Kaminari that read “Best Side”, fire headbands from Kirishima, headphones from Jirou, five free sponge cakes from Sato whenever Izuku wanted them, a half white half red hoodie from Todoroki, Hanta and and Ketchum and Tokoyami and Tanaka and Hagakure  _ all _ got him jewelry, a fairy garden starter set from- * **Ding Ding** * -

  
  


**GravityGurl:** That’s from Tsu.

  
  


\- All hands froze. His phone buzzed.  _ <Izuku is typing…> _

  
  


**Izuku:** Thank you, Tsu. I’ll make it a water one in her memory.

**GravityGurl:** I think she would have liked that.

**PINKY** : Agreed.

  
  


\- “Ah! I am going to go get the photo book!” Kaminari jumped up. “Me and Jirou finished them a couple of days ago.” Kirishima stood. “I’ll help you. There are, like, twenty of them, man.” The two ran off. * **Ding Ding** * -

  
  


**Izuku:** _ <insert picture of Umbreon hoodie> _

**Insomniac:** That’s me.

**Izuku:** I figured. Thank you, Hitoshi.

**Izuku** : Thank you all for the gifts and support.

**HumanCharger:** If you come over we have one more for you!

  
  


\- Hitoshi looked up to see Kaminari leaving the hallway with a stack of books in one arm. It was easy to forget that they all had grown in strength quite a lot. Kaminari and Kirishima put them on the coffee table in the middle. They waited. And they waited. And they waited. “He stopped,” Tokoyami commented. “It’s not even saying that he is typing anymore,” Kaminari sighed. Iida stood. “That is fine. We should not push our classmate. He might not be up to face-to-face conversation just yet. In the meantime, it is about time for dinner. Who is on the schedule this we-” 

* **Ca-chuck** *

All heads whipped around to the sound of a door opening. All the way at the very end of the hall was a boy and an Eevee in a wheelchair. Behind them, Shouta. Ketchum was just about to jump up when Todoroki grabbed him by the leg harshly and yanked the boy down. The bi-colored boy then reached over and pushed Hitoshi on the shoulder. The purple-haired boy jumped. He looked around. Everyone was looking at him.  _ Oh. Right. I’m the closest to Izuku here, aren’t I? They are expecting me to know what to do?! _

Clearing his throat, Hitoshi got up and met them halfway. “Well, well, well, the flunkie decides to show up, huh?” Viridian eyes glance up at him. Izuku looked just terrible. There was no other way to put it. His eyes had massive bags under them and the eyes themselves screamed of fear and paranoia. At least they were green again. His hair went down to the bottom of his shoulder blades unkempt and unevenly cut. He was pale and thin and his legs looked like they had been put through a meat grinder with other types of meat and came out in all different colors. Chip too. He looked bone thin and his fur was dry and tangled. He looked so tired, so afraid. Izuku looked away. “A- ah… yeah…” his voice was so small. Hitoshi looked up at Shouta. The man tried his best to smile at him. “He just wanted to say hi in person.”

Hitoshi nodded. “Well come on then. It’s good to have you two back. I’ll push.” Izuku’s head snapped up. Shouta walked around and took the boy’s hand. “I’m right here,” he whispered.  _ Oh…  _ Hitoshi got behind the wheelchair and took it’s handles. Izuku did not let go of Shouta’s hand the entire time. 

“You’re wearing the bandanas!” Ashido piped when they got close enough for her to not be loud but still sound cheerful. Izuku looked up at her. “And the headband,” Kirishima grinned. Though it was around Izuku’s wrist and Chip’s from paw. “And the hoodie,” Todoroki chimed in. Izuku looked down at them. “Yeah…”

…

…

…

Kaminari cleared his throat. “Well then, the final gift! Come on, come on!” Hitoshi cringed. They were trying so hard to sound normal. It felt so awkward and Izuku knows it. Hitoshi can see the guilt written all over Izuku’s face for the atmosphere he brought in. Hitoshi parked Izuku right next to the couch before sitting again. Shouta sat on the arm rest, hand moving to Izuku’s shoulder.  _ So he either has to see Shouta or have contact with him. Dang I knew it would have gotten worse.  _ Hitoshi felt guilt swirl in his own stomach.  _ I should have tried harder. I could have done better… _

Kaminari and Jirou passed out the books. “These are pictures from the Christmas party,” Jirou said. She held one out to Izuku. “I know you probably don’t remember it but we wanted to share the memories with you.” Everyone was flipping through theirs trying to be very discreet about watching Izuku flip through his and show Chip the pictures. 

* **sniff** *

Everyone flinched. Tears slowly rolled from Izuku’s eyes. He continued to turn through the pages. He choked on a laugh covered by a sob at a picture of Kaminari splayed out on the floor having just lost miserably at an UNO game. At some point Izuku had to put down the book in favor of wiping his eyes. “I- I’m sorry!” he sobbed. “I- I’m s- sorry I d- did this to all of y- you! I- I’m sorry I k- keep h- hurting you!” Uraraka stood sharply from her seat and crossed the distance. “I- I’m sorry!” She fell to her knees and encased the sobbing boy in a tight hug. Izuku’s sobs before they just got harder and louder. A few of the others started to get teary-eyed.

“It isn’t your fault, Izuku,” Uraraka said sternly. “I- I just-” “No,” she shut him down. “No one here is blaming you for the crimes of those lowlife villains. If that is why you came over then go back because your apologies are for false accusations. You have done nothing wrong, you hear me?” She leaned back and took the sobbing boy’s face in her hands forcing their eyes to meet. “You have done  _ nothing _ wrong.” Izuku hiccuped. Uraraka let him go and he fell forward, head on her shoulder. She patted his back. “We are just glad to have you back. How about we say no more villain attacks this year, huh? We’d kind of like to keep you in the classroom for more than a week.”

Izuku choked on another laugh. Kaminari nodded. “Mhmm. Mhmm. Wait! I might be smarter than someone in the class now! Izuku’s missed like a whole two months of school!” Jiro whapped the boy on the head. “Idiot, no one could possibly be dumber than you.” “Mean!” “Pfft…!” Everyone smiled when Izuku sat up laughing. He was still crying and still feverishly trying to wipe his ever falling tears but he was laughing. His emotions were so scattered. Hitoshi leaned over. “If you are dumber than Kaminari it’s all your fault for being a flunkie since the age of nine.” Izuku wiped his eyes. “I- I know, I know!” He hiccuped. “Y- you tell me e- everyday.”

“Tres bien!” Aoyama stood. “Well then I believe it is moi’s team for dinner this week.” Ashido and Ojiro stood up. “Rightio!” They went to the kitchen. Ojiro stopped beside Izuku. “You are staying for dinner, right?” Izuku looked over at Shouta. “But Grandma-”  _ Grandma? _ “It’s fine. I’ll send her a text.” Izuku looked back up at Ojiro. “Y- yeah.” The boy nodded and walked away.

It was nice to have Izuku back. Even though the class was still feeling down about Asui and probably would for a while, they had another one of their missing classmates back. They were more at ease. Shouta even ended up staying for dinner but most of the class realized by now it was because Izuku and Chip probably wouldn’t be functioning this well without him there. Hitoshi leaned over during dinner. “So who is ‘Grandma?’” Izuku blushed. “Sh- she is- well- I-” “She’s my mother,” Shouta answered for the boy. Heads turned. “Awwwwwww! Sensei’s mom is here!” she cooed. “What do you call her, Izuku? Granny? Maw maw? Does she pinch your cheeks?” The greenette looked like a tomato at this point. The class snickered. Hitoshi bumped him on the shoulder. “Look at you with a big ol’ family.” Maybe it was subconscious but Izuku leaned over and rested his head on Shouta’s arm. “Yeah... “

Well if that didn’t elicit the biggest awe fest from the girls then nothing did and Shouta could do nothing to stop them as they took pictures and sent them to the class group chat because he was currently with child on arm. 

Yeah, it was good to have Izuku back.

“Well they looked awful,” Kirishima mused as his team, which Hitoshi happened to be on, cleaned up after dinner. Izuku, Chip, and Shouta had all gone back home after dinner. They could tell Izuku and Chip were slowly getting more and more tense as time drew on and Shouta decided it was probably better for them to get to a quieter space for a while. “Does anyone know what happened during the battle?” Hitoshi caught a plate Uraraka had floated his way. He shook his head. “The start of it was on the news.” “Right!” Uraraka looked up from the sink. “They had gotten on the scene just as the battle started. I think Izuku and Chip fought with Madame Olympia against Shigaraki and Darkrai but they had a weird form or something. At some point the news casters had to leave for safety purposes.”

Hitoshi shrugs. “Doesn't matter now I guess. They’re alive.” Kirishima huffed. “Man, I’m so angry at those villains. Did you see them?! They looked ready to break!” Uraraka nodded. “Well I tell you what, if they ever try to pull something on this class again they will regret it-”

And so the nightly conversation continued. 

____________________________

“You cannot continue in the hero course.”

Principal Nedzu’s words were like a bomb dropped on Izuku’s and Chip’s hearts. They sat in Principal Nedzu’s office the next day with Dad. Izuku stared down at his pokemon with tears in his eyes that he refused to let fall.  _ Of course I can’t… Look at me. The doctor said I won’t even run again. I’m so useless! _ Izuku briefly remembered a similar conversation in his time on pain medication but it was too hazy to really decipher. “Izuku, Chip, you have my most sincere apologies. We have failed as heroes and as a school to take care of you and protect you allowing many times for villains to break in and attack and even kidnap and torture you. Our students are our top priority and mental health especially in the hero course is well taken into consideration. I am sorry but I don’t think it well for your mental state if you continue down the path of a hero.”

Izuku didn’t respond. How was he supposed to. He felt like if he tired he would just end up proving the principal's point right and breaking down right then and there. But then again, was the silence already doing that?

“We do have a few options though that you might like. Of course, you could choose to just drop out completely but these might pique your interest, if you will hear me out,” Principal Nedzu continued. Izuku at least offered the man and glance. “The year is almost over so we are offering to allow you to stay in your class as is just not attend the extra hero classes. After that we will have to transfer you completely out of the hero course. You are free to join a general education course or any other course offered here however as UA will be providing for any education you plan on taking after this year you may consider looking at high schools outside of UA, perhaps ones with electives in design? You are fond of that I have heard. You could pursue higher education after high school as well and get a degree in that. Just a few suggestions here and there.”

Izuku nodded numbly. He understood of course and don’t get him wrong, the idea of fully pursuing fashion is tantalizing. He just… isn’t ready to leave yet…

Principal Nedzu sighed. “I will give you a bit of time to think on it. You also still need to find a therapist, don’t you?” Izuku nodded again. “I don’t know if you know this but Kirishima, your classmate, his father is a well renowned therapist for heroes. If you are stuck choosing one he might be a good choice and as we are paying for your therapy as well it might not be bad to take the best one you can get.” Izuku didn’t know that actually.

“U- um… would I… have to move?” he asked hesitantly. “D- Dad still lives o- on campus so…” Principal Nedzu shook his head. “Of course not. We can get you a special pass and you would still be able to see your friends here and in the dorms.” Izuku hummed. “But like I said, take a few days to think about it. We will accept your decision whatever it may be.”

“Principal Nedzu,” Dad spoke up, “would it be alright if we took a week off? Midnight as well?” “Midnight? What for?” “A family outing,” Dad spoke confidently. Izuku looked up at him. Dad smirked. Principal Nedzu toiled over it for a second. “I suppose that is fine but a week is all.” Dad bowed, Izuku copying. “Thank you.”

When they left the principal’s office Izuku and Chip were about ready to cry again. Dad observed him for a moment. He nodded. “Alright. Let’s go breakdown Nemuri’s door.” Izuku’s head snapped up. “What?!” In no fewer seconds was Izuku gripping the arm rests of his wheelchair and Chip’s claws digging into his clothing as Dad practically sprinted down the halls of UA. They came to a screeching halt outside of Nemuri’s classroom, Dad holding Izuku’s shoulders to keep him in his seat. The boy’s eyes were blown wide. Dad chuckled. “You should see your face.” Izuku deadpanned. His father turned to the door, grabbed the handle, and threw it open with a loud- * **BAM** *

Kaminari screamed.  _ Wait- Kaminari?  _ Izuku peaked in to see his class.  _ Oh. _ Kaminari was blushing profusely while Jirou mocked him. Nemuri stood at the front very unamused. Dad smirked and pointed over her shoulder. “We’re bailing you out, Nedzu approved jail break.”

Hitoshi and Izuku met eyes. The greenette just shrugged. Nemuri spun around to the class. “Sorry, kiddos, Midnight is off duty!” Iida stood up karate chopping. “What about class?! This is highly unprofessional of such an institution!” Nemuri rolled her eyes. Do chapter 13 in your textbooks while I’m gone. Tootles!” She pushed Izuku and Dad out of the room and closed the door just in time for Ashido to yell-

“THE WHOLE THING?!”

“This isn’t like you, Shouta,” Nemuri says as they walk. They enter the elevator down. “Well I’ve done a lot of things recently that aren’t like me,” Dad responds, “so I guess I’ll just keep the ball rolling. We are going on a family vacation.” Nemuri blanches. “A- are you sure it’s alright for me to come along?!”

Izuku curls his hands into fists. “You’re… a part of it too…” he mumbles. Nemuri takes a shuddering breath. She ruffles his hair. “Well then I guess I have to come along!” And then a quiet, “Thank you,” that makes Izuku’s heart feel all weird. “Soooo where are we going?” Nemuri asks. Dad shrugs. “I don’t know.” The woman sighs. “Of course you don’t. You are so lucky to have me.”

Nemuri helped with the planning of the impromptu trip. There was a fair in a few days at Coumarine City. So that they would be able to make the most of their time they packed up immediately and left that night. It was only about two and a half hours away. The hotel they chose while sitting on the couch at home was one right on the beach. Now, Izuku obviously couldn’t go on the beach currently unless they wanted to carry him or something but the hotel was massive and had like, three pools and a hot tub. The heroes really made use of their paychecks. There were apparently seats on the edges of the poles that handicapped people can sit on and have them lowered into the pool so they could be with everyone else. The hotel was also pokemon friendly but they were limited to one per person and under a certain size. They had a separate pokemon pool for them next to each human pool. Fur tended to clog there so they had to keep them separate. Nemuri did her research. It was all good in the ear but in person Izuku didn’t realize how many people would be there.

“Izuku, calm down,” Dad murmured as he pushed him through the doors. Chip had all but glued himself to Dad’s neck. Izuku could feel his hand begin to twitch the more people he saw. He wasn’t ever afraid of crowds before and yet all he could think about was the potential villains that could literally just be sleeping in the room over.

“Hello!” Nemuri walked up to the front desk. “We have a room reserved for Aizawa?” The woman at the front desk looked them up. She looked up at Izuku and then back at the screen, eyes widening a bit.

Izuku didn’t know it but Nemuri and Dad had sent a special request when asking for a room:  _ ‘If possible high enough floor for a good view but low enough to not look like a good height to jump from.’ _ He also didn’t know that the school had put him under suicide watch which made sense considering everything that had happened. “Right,” the front desk lady handed them a couple of key cards. “Floor four, room 423.” Nemuri took them. “Thank you!”

She rambled about the supposed great breakfast that this hotel served as they rode the elevator up to the fourth floor. There were twelve floors total. It really was grand. Izuku felt totally out of place in his Umbreon hoodie and blue shorts that he sadly had to wear until he could walk properly again. Though Izuku supposes that right now he is more comfort dressing instead of styling. 

Their room had two beds. “One for the guys, one for the girl,” Dad explained. “Are y- you two not sleeping t- together?” Izuku asked. Dad and Nemuri stared at him with wide eyes. Nemuri’s smile tightened. “What…?” Dad rolled his eyes and slapped her shoulder. “Get your head out of the gutter. No, we aren’t married, Izuku. Plus I know you won’t sleep unless I am there.” The greenette blushed. He couldn’t help it. He just…

\-----

_ ‘What if you close your eyes and never open them again?!’ Izuku screeched. All heads in the house shot up. _

\-----

Since waking up in the hospital, Izuku hasn’t spent a night away from Dad, not even in the hospital. He just couldn’t… “Now,” Dad grabbed his pajamas, “it is almost midnight and I am tired. We aren’t thinking about work, about school, about anything. This week is for relaxing so at least for a few days,” he rests his hands on Izuku’s head, “let’s just forget everything, okay?”

Forget everything… Forget the villains, Dad is here. Forget leaving the hero course, Dad is still here. Forget Asui’s death, Dad is alive. Dad is here and that is all that matters to Izuku so he will just… forget.

It is a bit embarrassing how he has to do things like let Dad lower him into the bath because Izuku can’t get his legs over the side himself but his father does it with all the care and gentleness in the world. He sits outside the bathroom door just in case Izuku needs him, tapping on it every so often to let the boy know he is still there. Izuku sometimes feels bad about it, he feels needy, but every time Dad is out of view it’s like some freak force of nature that just screams DANGER washed over him.

_ What if he died? Are they going to attack again? I’m scared. Don’t leave me. Come back! Don’t leave me here! _ * **tap tap tap** * goes Dad on the outside of the bathroom door. Tears flood Izuku’s eyes.

The world is so much scarier than Izuku thought. He thought he could handle Mr. Midoriya. He thought Mr. Midoriya was the worst thing out there. He was wrong. He was so very wrong. Everything. It’s everything that is bad. Everything besides a select few people like Dad and Nemuri and maybe Yamada and Doctor Suzuki and some of his friends and Nurse Hope but everything else-!

“I’m done…” he whispers.  _ I want Dad… _ And the man hears him and opens the door meeting his own black eyes with Izuku’s tearful green.

____________________________

“Is it really that bad?” Nemuri whisper-asks as Shouta sits outside of the bathroom door. He turns and taps the door again. Shouta gives her a sad look.  _ You have no idea. _

The first day after Izuku’s near-death experience in the hospital the heart monitors were still attached just in case. Shouta left for just a second to ask Doctor Szukuki something only for the heart monitor to flatline. He burst back in to see Izuku and Chip on the floor having noticed him gone and trying to chase after Shouta with Izuku’s legs still completely wrapped and ended up falling in a mess of tears from a mix of pain and fear. That was the first time Shouta realized just how bad this transition was going to be. Not exactly bad but hard. Shouta is happy to do it, of course, but it worries him this new stage of Izuku’s fear and paranoia. Ever since they got him out of the Midoriya household it was like his mental state decided to take a swan dive off a roof in slow motion just getting worse and worse and worse and, well, here they are now.

“I- -one,” he hears Izuku through the door. Shouta stands and takes a deep breath. He opens the door and Izuku looks up at him. Yup, he was crying. Shouta truly hopes that even if obviously a week of just messing around and having fun won’t do much, it will at least relax the boy enough to start seriously moving forward.

But for now they would take it slow. Izuku would curl up next to him on their bed, head on his chest as the TV drawls on while Nemuri takes notes on the food on the cooking show they were watching and Chip rests on Liepard’s flank while the cat pokemon grooms Umbreon's fur. It was peaceful, it kept them calm and right now a little bit of peace is all they needed.

____________________________

Izuku almost freaked out the next morning. He completely forgot where he was. After Dad took a good few minutes to calm him down, Izuku remembered that, oh yeah, they are on a ‘family vacation.’

The greenette looked up at Nemuri as she helped him get his food at the breakfast that really was just as good as she made it out to be. “Izukuuuuu,” she waved her hand in front of his face making him jump. She giggled. “Do you want hashbrowns?” He nodded sheepishly. He could have done this himself but Nemuri seemed to be trying to go the extra mile. Was she thinking it too? Izuku had been questioning for a bit as the two got closer. Natural procession of dating was marriage and that would mean she would become his legal mother but emotionally? Izuku was still trying to place her and he thinks she is trying to fill that role in this ‘family vacation.’ Izuku thinks that is also part of Dad’s plan too, to see how Izuku and Nemuri get along in a familiar setting.

Izuku finds himself glancing over at Nemuri a lot during breakfast.

“Wooooooh! I am so ready for this!” Nemuri came out of the bathroom in her bathing suit, a velvety red bikini. “Nemuri there are children around,” Dad hissed. Izuku raised an eyebrow. “I’m fifteen.” Nemuri laughed. “Oh, come one, Sho,” she held his arm. “You know everyone is going to be jealous of you.”

Dad stormed right into the bathroom and came out with the white bathrobe from the hotel. He threw it on her. “At least until we are at the pool.” Nemuri leaned down just a bit and whispered in Izuku’s ear, “Your father is jealous.” Izuku snorted before quickly covering his mouth. “Nemuri, what did you tell him?” She wrapped the robe around her. “Nothing!” “Mhmph.” 

Izuku frowned, looking at his exposed torso. Izuku forgot where he put his swimsuit the last time they had it which was the training camp so now his full body one was sitting in the yet to be unpacked because they forgot it in the rush of his kidnapping bag at home in his closet. Nemuri went down to the hotel gift shop where they had a few bathing suits and got him freaking Magikarp swim trunks.

Dad ruffled his hair. “Don’t worry about it, problem child. We all have scars.” He turned and showed Izuku his back. The greenette pales at the rather massive scar diagonal across his back. “Comes with the job.” Nemuri nodded showing off the one on her side and the other on her leg. They each had a few here and there smaller ones but those ones were definitely more prominent. Of course they didn’t look like they had an autopsy done to them or like they went through a paper shredder but it was still a bit reassuring to know that he wasn’t the only one with scars.

“To the pools!” Nemuri boldly led the way out of their hotel room.

When they got down there the pools were so crowded! Izuku felt like he’d have a panic attack from just looking at the sheer amount of people. Nemuri got a lifeguard to help lower him into the water on that chair thing. It was so cold! But his legs felt so light! Chip, Umbreon, and Liepard went to the closeby pokemon pool. It was a bit chilly with it only being early February but this part of the region was rarely cold for long, the chill staying in the ends of the year.

“Izuku!” Nemuri got his attention. “Catch!” She threw a beach ball to him. If it weren’t for the belt on the seat Izuku might have fallen right off of it. Instead he reached forward leaning against it and just barely caught the ball. Nemuri pointed to Dad who waved. Izuku threw it over to the man who threw it over to Nemuri and so the triangle game of catch started. It wasn’t the same as swimming and sometimes Dad or Nemuri would have to get the ball for him when he couldn’t quite reach it but it was fun.

\-----

_ ‘I think it will do you some good to just be a kid again.’ _

\-----

_Yeah,_ Izuku thinks to himself. _This is… nice._ _It’s nice to be fifteen again._

They did have to get out rather quickly though because scarred feet tend to get cold faster and Izuku didn’t know that before he found out his legs went numb. “Let’s go to the hot tubs then,” Nemuri suggested. She just really wanted to go there from the start of it. Something about girls just seem to love hot tubs. “Umbreon, take care of Chip,” Dad ordered. Chip’s head shot up from Liepard’s back as the pokemon paddled around. “I will be in the hot tub just a few feet away,” Dad said. Umbreon and Liepard won’t let anything happen, I promise.” Chip whimpered. Umbreon slashed the Eevee with water. “Vee!”

Izuku chuckled.  _ Maybe Chip just wants to be an Eevee too. Maybe not being a hero… is for the better… _

“Mind if an extra few join?” Nemuri asked those already in the hot tub. It was always polite to ask first when entering a hot tub. Izuku could feel the eyes of pity on him when the total strangers took in the state of his body. “It’s fine,” a woman with her supposed husband waved them in. “The more the merrier!” Izuku felt a bit self conscious of Dad having to lift him and put Izuku down on the stone seats built into the wall of the hot tub. It was so warm. So relaxing. “Do you care if we turn on the jets?” the woman from before asked. Nemuri shook her head. “Oh please do!”  _ Jets? _ Izuku watched as the woman got out and turned a knob. Soon enough underwater jets began blowing out slightly hotter water. Izuku jumped. “Wha-” “AhHhHhHh-” Nemuri’s voice bubbled. She smirked at him. “PuT yOuR bAcK tO iT.” He frowned but nevertheless followed her instruction and ooooh it was like a back messenger. Izuku couldn’t help let out a similar sigh of enjoyment before giggling when his voice jumped from the pressure like Nemuri’s did. Izuku leaned his head back against the edge of the hot tub and stared up at the sky as Nemuri made small talk with the woman.

_ This is nice… _ Chip hobbled over soon and laid at the edge of the hot tub, resting his head on Izuku’s shoulder. Not technically in it. Izuku hummed, enjoying the way his chest jumped with the air jets.  _ Yeah… _ He patted Chip’s head.  _ Nice… _

__

____________________________

__

_ He’s relaxing,  _ Shouta thought to himself, pleased.

__

“So what do you do?” the woman, Hinari, asked. “I’m an entertainer, believe it or not,” Nemuri replied. It’s best as heroes not to tell your actual occupation when in civilian clothing. They don’t want villains trailing them outside of work. “I’m just an office worker,” he replies. Normally Shouta wouldn’t respond and let Nemuri do all the talking but recently he feels like he has become more sociable. Maybe Nemuri and Hizashi were right. Maybe Shouta is changing a bit. For better or for worse, Shouta thinks right now it is for the best.

__

* **tap tap tap** * Shouta looks over at Izuku. Dazed green eyes blink up at him blearily. Shouta chuckled. “Izuku, have you never been in a hot tub before?” Izuku shook his head. “The hot springs at camp…” he mumbled. Shouta nodded. “Yeah, I figured.” He stood up. “It’s just a bit of heat dizziness, don’t worry.” He waved to Hinari and her husband. “I’ll be right back. Come on, Izuku, you are about to learn the wonders of sunbathing,” he joked as he got out of the hot tub with Izuku in tow.

__

Shouta gently laid Izuku on one of those plastic pool chairs that recline. “I’ll be right back. I am just going to get you some water.” Izuku’s hand snagged the end of Shouta’s black swim trunks. He gently took his son’s hand. “You trust Nemuri right? She is right there. I will be gone for only a few minutes. Nothing will happen with her around, same as me.” Hazy viridian eyes searched him before Izuku reluctantly let go. Shouta blinked.  _ Maybe Izuku and Nemuri are closer than I thought. _

__

He went off to get the boy some water and a wet towel to put on his forehead.

__

____________________________

__

“If you don’t mind me asking,” Bokuto, Hinari’s husband, spoke up after Shouta got out with Izuku, “but is your son adopted? I noticed your husband asked about his experience with the hot tub.”

__

Nemuri was taken back by the question. No one has ever referred to Izuku as her son. It sort of felt nice. Not only that but Hinari called Shouta her husband. Nemuri knows she should correct the couple but she kind of didn’t want to. “That’s right,” Shouta’s voice startled her from behind. Her eyes widened when she realized Shouta just laid claim to their false understandings. The man smirked when she looked up at him. It could just be Shouta and his paranoia over people finding out their identities as heroes but somehow it didn’t seem like that to her. “We adopted him only a few months ago so we aren’t too knowledgeable over what he has and hasn’t done.” Nemuri looked over at Izuku who was now sitting up with a cold towel to his head. Nemuri cringes. She remembered when she was maybe ten and she tried to stay in the hot tub much longer than a ten year old girl should be in a hot tub. The dizziness from the heat isn’t very fun at all. She turned back to the couple. “So you two are in business?” Bokuto nodded. “Soap production,” he stated. 

__

Nemuri loved hot tubs for the heat and comfortableness of course but also for these small moments where you can just talk with random people. Not about anything important, you won’t know them for that long, but sometimes just chatting about odds and ends is nice too. It didn’t feel like business or going over that recent case or villain you just took down. Maybe this was a much needed vacation for all of them.

__

“Ah, your son…” Hinari discreetly pointed out of the water. Nemuri and Shouta’s heads swiveled around. Izuku was just crawling off of the chair and slowly trying to make his way to them. Shouta sighed, getting ready to get out. “Let me,” Nemuri waved him and got out. She walked over and helped Izuku the rest of the way to the hot tub where he sat at the edge with just his feet in. “What were you thinking, young man,” Nemuri chided. Izuku pouted a bit. “I just thought that if the bottom of my legs don’t work then surely the top…” He averted his eyes. “And the bubble jets felt nice,” he mumbled. Nemuri laughed. “Welcome to the world of hot tubs, kiddo!”

__

And the entire hot tub laughed. A small smile, almost undetectable, rested on Izuku’s lips and Nemuri could have been happy the rest of her life with that smile because  _ her son _ was happy.

__

____________________________

__

The rest of their first day of vacation was spent at the pool up until maybe four in the afternoon. They got snow cones and smoothies and ended up spending a good while with that Hinari and Bokuto couple. Nemuri even ended up getting their numbers. Izuku found out that he really likes the lazy river. It is a larger pool shaped like a river where you sit in an inner tube as the slow moving water pushes you around it. The water in it was the perfect temperature, he was able to sit and still sort of move at the same time, and even though it wasn’t really allowed probably none of the lifeguards had the heart to tell the kid with a million scars and his ‘parents’ to stop throwing the ball in between their tubes.

__

Izuku crawled onto the bed and flopped down after he had gotten dressed back into normal clothes that evening. Nemuri giggled, sitting next to him. She played with his hair. “Tired much?” Izuku grumbled into the bed sheets. He turned his head to look out the sliding doors to the balcony. Today had been a really good day. He hardly thought about anything bad, only little things here and there. Izuku had never been to a pool before. He thinks he likes them. He knows these peaceful times won’t last forever but maybe he can indulge in them a little longer?

__

Something soft is thrown over his head. Izuku pulls it down to look at it.  _ Dad’s bathrobe…? Why did he bring this? _ Chip came over and curled up next to Izuku.  _ Oh well. _ Izuku pulls it back over his and Chip’s head.  _ Stealing this for now. _ And he falls asleep right there in the middle of the bed.

__

He does wake up again in a couple of hours when a knock at the door startles him awake only to find out that Nemuri had ordered pizza to their hotel room. After eating, some more television watching, and some card game playing the residents of room 423 fell asleep, Izuku and Chip happily curled up in Dad’s arms.

__

\-----

__

_ ‘P- please! I won’t do it again!’ _

__

_ ‘You should have listened to me the first time.’ _

__

_ ‘St- stop! Don’t hurt him!’ _

__

_ ‘These are the consequences of your actions.’ _

__

_ ‘Stop! P- please! You’ll kill him!’ _

__

_ ‘Maybe then next time you will learn your place!’ _

__

_ ‘Stop-!’ _

__

_ *CrAcK* _

__

_ … _

_ … _

_ … _

__

_ ‘DADDY!!!’ _

__

____________________________

__

“-ad! Wa- e up! N- NO! Daddy!”

__

Shouta’s eyes snapped open when a weight landed on his chest. He saw Izuku, Izuku’s hands on his chest, and then- “Oof!” Izuku pushed. “D- don’t die! You can’t!”  _ He’s trying to do CPR, _ Shouta’s sleep dazed mind informs him.  _ CPR?  _ “DADDY!” Shouta was shaken out of it by the broken cry.  _ Oh. My.  _ “IZUKU!” Shouta jolted up, grabbing the crying boy by the arms. Wide, bloodshot eyes met his. Shouta looked around the room. Chip was on the edge of the bed growling, Nemuri was up ready to pull up her sleeve and release her quirk, Liepard and Umbreon were trying to stop her, and Izuku was on Shouta’s lap trying to give him CPR which is extremely dangerous to do to a breathing person. He needed to diffuse the situation fast.

__

“Izuku, Chi-” The greenette suddenly lurched toward the bedside table in between the two beds and ripped the hotel phone from it. “Suck! Izuku, stop!” Shouta grabbed the boy on the arm but not before Izuku dialed 911.

_ “911, what is your emerg-” _ “HE’S DYING!” Izuku screamed. Shouta yanked the phone from the boy’s hands. “Nemuri, handle this!” Shouta threw the phone at her but it only got so far being connected to the receiver. Luckily she caught it. “NO! HE’S DYING! PLEASE!” Shouta grabbed Izuku by the waist and Chip by the tail and drew them both to his chest and pushed both of their heads to his chest as close as he could without them hurting each other. “Listen to me!” he shouted. “I’m not dead!” Shouta covered their eyes so that they had to only focus on their sense of hearing. “Listen to my beating heart. I’m  _ alive _ .”

…

…

…

Izuku and Chip both let out a heart-wrenching sob. Shouta fell back against the backboard with a long sigh.  _ I shouldn’t have gotten naive when the day went so well. They’ve had a nightmare every night aside from yesterday. I shouldn’t have gotten comfortable. _ “See? I’m breathing. Breathe with me, okay? In and out.”

__

“Yes, officer, I understand,” Nemuri sighed into the phone. “See you in a bit.” She hung up and looked over at them. “By protocol they will have to come and see what was wrong, especially when a child screams someone is dy-” She stops, looking down at Izuku and Chip who are shivering against Shouta’s chest. “Well, you know.”

__

* **knock knock knock** *

__

Nemuri furrowed her eyebrows. “That was fast.” She opened the door to the hotel room only to see Hinari and Bokuto. They stared at each other. “What a small world!” Hinari gasps. “You are my next door neighbor!” She points to the hotel room over. Nemuri chuckles, scratching the back of her head. “I am so sorry. Did we wake you?” Bokuto nodded. “Is everything alright?”

__

Shouta let her handle them and explain the situation. He looked down at his sons who refused to lift their ears from his chest. “I’m s- sorry,” Izuku murmured. “Do-” “I- I’ll do better. Don’t h- hurt him. I’m s- sorry. I- I’ll obey. I’ll be a good b- boy.” 

__

_ \----- _

__

_ ‘We took the DNA samples from the Nomu we capture from the Lumiose City attack. Turns out we were right about them taking near-dead people and pokemon and making them into those,’ Nedzu said. _

__

_ ‘Okay? What does that have to do with me?’ Shouta asked. _

__

_ ‘One of them was Midoriya Hisashi.’ _

__

_ \----- _

__

_ I should probably tell them that sooner or later. _

__

Nemuri handled Hinari and Bokuto. They were lucky that they happened to be their hotel neighbors. When the police came Izuku and Chip practically bit their heads off trying to keep them away from Shouta. To prove them being safe to keep at a hotel Shouta had to explain the reasoning behind their actions in a fun charade of ‘Names I am Not Allowed To Mention’ and ‘Don’t Say Anything That Means Death.’ When they finally left and Nemuri apologized to the hotel staff, they all finally settled in the room.

__

_ Three in the morning,  _ Shouta read the digital alarm clock on the bedside table. He flicked his hand to the television remote. Nemuri nodded and turned it on at a low volume. It was obvious that she didn’t know what to do which is fine. There isn’t really anything to do aside from running his hands through their hair/fur and promising him that they were fine. He had done this many times in the past few days alone. Nemuri slid under the covers with them and leaned on Shouta’s shoulder. Umbreon and Liepard joined them on the bed on either side of them. “Give them time,” he whispered. “They’ll come to their senses soon enough.” His girlfriend hummed. “You’re used to this.” “Sadly.” Shouta smiled sadly. “It’s going to be a long time until they can sleep soundly again…”

“Aren’t they lucky to have you.”

“No,” Shouta met Izuku’s eyes finally once they had cleared. “I’m lucky to have them.”

__

It was well after five in the morning when Izuku and Chip finally drifted off to sleep again. Nemuri fell asleep on his shoulder and him on her head. It was a bittersweet beginning to their first family vacation.

__

____________________________

__

“So what are you looking for?” the hairdresser asked. Izuku blinked.  _ When did we even get here? _ He looked over at Nemuri who was leaning over the counter past the cutters alley in the shop smirking at him. He sweatdropped.  _ Her. This was definitely Nemuri’s plan. _

__

\-----

__

_ ‘There is a seaside shopping strip here!’ she announced. ‘It’s like one of those old, rustic shopping ports with tents and wooden cabins and the like. We have to go!’ _

__

\-----

__

It could not have just been a coincidence that one of the stalls was offering haircuts.  _ Are they even any good? It’s literally a shack at the end of the line. What if they give me a buzz cut or something? _

__

“He needs something to impress the ladies,” Nemuri called over. Izuku blushed. He wasn’t really looking for relationship much but like any teenage boy he does get flustered sometimes around girls. In the back of his mind he knows that Nemuri is just pulling his leg but saying things like that puts thoughts into his mind about love and that junk and love is, well, as far as Izuku’s seen in an intimate relationship type way… it would be what Mr. and Mrs. Midoriya had and that didn’t leave a very good image in Izuku’s mind. Dad and Nemuri’s relationship was just starting to clear that up. He doesn’t think he is ready to start looking at ‘What if not all relationships are abusive’ like that?

__

That being said, Izuku has been thinking much about what Principal Nedzu said today. He couldn’t really do much today but let Dad wheel him around while Nemuri took her time at all the antique shops. Izuku paid attention to some of the few, very small clothing stores here and there but aside from that, most of these shacks and tents had little niknaks and the like, something he didn’t take Nemuri for being the type to like so much. So it left Izuku’s mind to wander and in hopes of not digging up the memories from last night that had him clinging to his father when he woke up this morning, Izuku chose to actually think about his options for the future which was strange in itself. He never thought he would have a future to decide for himself before. It was always just do what Mr. Midoriya wants and hope you don’t die that night.

__

So as he flipped through the book of reference hairstyles the stylist gave him, Izuku couldn’t help but think about it again and especially what Principal Nedzu said about potentially pursuing schooling outside of UA and along the lines of design. Izuku thinks about all of the designers he had seen online and on television. Most of them were women but there were a few men. Izuku doesn’t want to be just any ol’ fashion designer though. He wants to be different.

__

\-----

__

_ ‘Be different. Different is okay. Izuku is different. Izuku is okay.’ _

__

\-----

__

A phantom pain in his ears had Izuku naturally reaching for them. He felt bile rise in his throat.

__

“Izuku,” Dad’s voice cut through the fog like a butter knife. The greenette slowly put his hand down and took a deep breath. “Take as much time as you need,” the stylist said. “No one really stops in our shop much.” Dad wandered over, waving Nemuri to come along with, and the two crouched on either side of him and they flipped through the pages together. Chip, who sat in his lap, held his nose up when he thought anything was stupid or uncool and Izuku couldn’t help but laugh. He eventually paused on one for a second before flipping past it. And then he found himself comparing others to it. And then Dad called him out on it and flipped back in the pages until Chip guessed his trainer correctly and smashed his paw to the page before Dad could flip back.

__

“Isn’t it too girly?” Izuku asked hesitantly.

“Boys with long hair are in nowadays,” Dad responded.

“You are just justifying your own hair.”

“No one complained yet.”

“Iida would deny your statement.”

“Iida’s a tightwad,” Nemuri piped in.

“Can you say that about your student?” Izuku asked.

She shrugged. “I’m off duty.”

“Pfft…!”

Dad twirled his finger around in his own black hair. “You’ll never have hair as long as mine,” he tried to joke but his face didn’t really fit the falsetto voice.

__

Izuku rolled his eyes and turned his eyes back to the book. “I think this one then.” He glanced at Dad. “I- is that okay?” The raven-haired man nodded. “That’s  _ fine _ .” A small smile formed on Izuku’s lips. Dad called over the hairstylist and they got to work. It wasn’t really as long as Izuku was thinking. Actually, he was sort of trying to mimic Dad’s hair when he picked out Dad’s outfit for his first date with Nemuri. Izuku’s hair after the Lumiose City attack was uneven and went down to the ends of his shoulder blades. Turns out the small shop knew what they were doing. The hairstylist worked wonders on Izuku’s mess of a head. A good thirty minutes later and the stylist turned him around. “How is it?”

__

Izuku had  _ bangs _ . He’d seen Dad pin back his bangs once on the top of his head when grading papers and thought that would be a good solution for him when sowing and his hair fell out of the ponytail but he didn’t have long enough hair or bangs to do it. Now he had both! They stopped just below his eyebrows and were left thin enough to see his eyebrows through them a bit. The rest of Izuku’s hair was cut to just longer than his shoulders so he could still tie it up halfway and that is just what he did. With his hair falling in the back and a small ponytail and his bangs that caressed the sides of his face and rested on his forehead Izuku thinks he really likes this style. He slid on his round glasses to get a clear look at himself.  _ Yeah, this is good. _

__

“Something tells me,” Dad’s voice beside him made him jump, “that you’ve been thinking about stuff. Want to talk about it tonight?” Izuku looked down at Chip. “C- can me and Chip um… talk first?” Dad nodded. They paid, Izuku thanked the adults- bleh, thanking adults -, and they left the hairstylists.

__

“So it isn’t really a fair,” Nemuri said as they walked back to the hotel. She was scrolling through her phone. “Apparently smaller port towns and cities like these do small festivals to celebrate their town and culture.” “I’ve heard of those,” Dad mused. “But I’ve lived in Lumiose City my whole life and they don’t really do that there.” “Can I see?” Izuku asked. Nemuri handed him her phone. He scrolled through the pictures.

__

“We did one of these in Vaniville Town twice a year,” he said. Dad and Nemuri looked down at him in shock. “We were even allowed out of the basement once or twice so as not to look suspicious to attend.” The adults mentally winced. “I remember telling Hitoshi about it one year and he went back home to ask his parents if he could come. He stayed over at Serena’s place and we went the next night. Vaniville’s usually lasted about three nights so as long as we went at least one night it didn’t seem weird.” The couple behind him were silent for a bit. “Ah ha ha…” Nemuri chuckled dryly. “W- well they always sounded fun when I heard about them! Don’t you wear kimonos to those?” Izuku nodded, handing her back the phone. “Did you wear one?” she asked. “Up until I was about seven maybe but I grew out of mine when I was five. Well, I had a yukata at least. They gave it to their daughter since it was long like a kimono on her and then I just wore shorts and a t-shirt like always. It didn’t really matter though cause I stopped attending them since I didn’t have any money to use and even if Nurse Hope slipped me some no one liked me enough to sell me stuff or let me play the games.”

__

The wheelchair turned and they stopped outside of a stall. Izuku was just about to look up when Dad’s hand came and took off his glasses and the other one rested over Izuku’s eyes. Nemuri did the same over Chip’s eyes. “Dad?” “Breathe,” his father said calmly. It was only then did Izuku realize his arm had started to jerk slightly and the air felt more thin. “It was a long night. Let’s try not to think about the bad parts of the past for now, alright?” Izuku and Chip nodded, the two taking a few shaky breaths trying to remember where they were. When Izuku’s hand got out its last twitch, Dad and Nemuri removed their hands.

__

“Sorry, Izuku, Chip,” Nemuri apologized. Izuku shook his head, keeping his head low. “I- it’s fine. Sometimes I just get lost in thought…” “Do you want to go to the festival? It’s fine if we stay at the hotel you know.” Izuku met Chip’s eyes. He looked between Dad and Nemuri. “We’re fine with attending. I think it will be much better with you two there.” He furrowed his eyebrows and mumbled to himself, “There might be a bonfire or fireworks though.” He didn’t expect them to hear it. They did and Dad made an effort to check the schedules to make sure they weren’t there for those.

__

The festival was the night after and Nemuri, being the woman she is, insisted on them all wearing kimono and yukata so she dragged their supposed “lazy bums” to a small little kimono store where they got fitted into them. A bit odd getting in and out of them in his current state of inability to walk but not a bad experience. Dad got a navy blue yukata at Nemuri’s denial for him wearing a plain black one. She got a kimono with lily blossoms all over it, and Izuku got himself a forest green yukata with thin white stripes. They also got matching ones for their respective pokemon. “Pepper is going to be so jealous,” Izuku commented. Chip raised his head proud as he was the one who came along.

__

Despite the rocky start to the day and the few hiccups here and there, Izuku doesn’t think it was a bad day. He felt his hair, properly cut and washed now. In fact, it was not a bad day at all.

__

____________________________

__

“What are they talking about?” Nemuri came up behind Shouta and wrapped his arms around his waist. He was looking out the balcony window as Izuku and Chip sat out there talking. The moon was up. With its bright light in the cloudless sky shining down on them, Shouta could make out the bags under his sons’ eyes and the way his eyelids seemed to sag a bit more and his shoulders always seemed tense. Or maybe it was just the setting. Izuku and Chip were enjoying themselves but he could tell they were always looking over their backs for villains or to make sure he was still there. It was tiring being paranoid all of the time but that is what PTSD will do to someone.

__

“They are talking about their future,” Shouta finally replied. “I’m just making sure they don’t get lost and decide now would be a good time to die instead.” “Ah.” “Nemuri?” “Hmm?” “Thank you for coming,” Shouta rested his hands on hers around his waist. She smiled. “Thanks for inviting me.”

__

Izuku turned around in his chair and met Shouta’s eyes. Tired. Shouta patted Nemuri’s hand. “I’ll be right back,” he whispered. She let him go and Shouta made his way to the balcony door. “Shouta, take this,” he turned just in time to see the blanket off of the bed get thrown at him. He caught it. “Thanks.” Shouta opened the door to the balcony. “Hey, you two, mind if I join in?”

__

After a second of maneuvering, Shouta got Izuku and Chip and himself all wrapped up in the blanket and them on his lap in the boy’s wheelchair. It was a shockingly comfortable chair. “So you’ve been talking about a few things, I hear,” he started carefully. Izuku nodded against his chest. “Mind if I ask about what?” Izuku was silent for a while before he spoke so small, so frail. “Dad, do you still mean it when you said you would support what we decided to do back when you asked if we wanted to be heroes?” He nodded. “Of course.” Izuku took a long, calculated breath.

__

“We don’t think… that being heroes is the correct path for us,” Izuku finally said. “I know I said I wasn’t ready to give it up but at this point I don’t think I can handle being around all of it much longer. I know you said the threat is gone and we aren’t being targeted anymore but the stress is… We just can’t do it anymore.” Shouta rested his head on the top of his son’s and waited. “W- we were thinking about doing that thing that Principal Nedzu suggested about staying the rest of the year and then transferring schools.” Shouta blinked. He had expected Izuku to say transferring courses. “There is’t a lot we can do much anymore. I- I, um, tried to evolve but I couldn’t. Chip could but I can’t anymore. I don’t know why though. I’m probably just broken.” Shouta also didn’t know about that either. “I can’t walk and when I am able to I won’t be able to run so fighting is out of the question. We can’t stand the sight of fire or the smell of smoke. There’s more and more things that just seem to keep piling up. For now,” Izuku sniffed. Shouta knew he was trying not to cry. “F- for now I think it’s time to get away from UA. W- we can still see our friends there after school but after this year is over we think it’s best to start a normal life. I’ve come to realize that the normal before wasn’t really normal…”

__

“I understand,” Shouta said softly. “So you want to go to another school then. And then college after that?” Izuku nodded. “I- is that okay?” Shouta nodded. “Of course. I will always support you two. You are my sons after all and I love you very, very much.” Izuku and Chip both sniffled. He held them closely. “I love you too,” Izuku whispered. “Eevee ee.”

__

They stayed outside watching the waves lap against the shore of the beach in the moonlight. It was a quiet night. “Dad?” Izuku suddenly spoke up again. “Hmm?” “I forgot to tell you but I spoke to one of your friends when I was dying.” Shouta furrowed his eyebrows.

__

“He said his name was  **Shirakumo** .” Shouta’s heart almost stopped beating. His mouth felt dry.

__

\-----

__

_ We took the DNA samples from the Nomu we capture from the Lumiose City attack. Turns out we were right about them taking near-dead people and pokemon and making them into those,’ Nedzu said. _

__

_ ‘Okay? What does that have to do with me?’ Shouta asked. _

__

_ ‘One of them was Midoriya Hisashi.’ Nedzu met his eyes. ‘And Kurogiri had the DNA of Shirakumo Oboro in him, your old high school friend.’ _

__

\-----

__

“He told me to tell you that it’s not your fault,” Izuku continued. Shouta’s heart twisted. He felt tears slowly roll down his cheeks. “And to not join him too quickly. He likes to see you and Yamada smile from up there.” Shouta took a shuddering breath.  _ That’s so like him. _ “Dad?” Shouta gave a watery chuckle. “Thank you for telling me, Izuku.” He pulled his son tighter. “Thank you…” 

__

____________________________

__

The next day before the festival they went to the pools again and actually met up with Hinari and Bokuto too. Izuku was a bit skeptical of them still but then again he was skeptical of every single person there. They ended up joining in on the lazy river ball game and Izuku almost got sick again in the hot tub and had to get out again. Nemuri called him weak sauce for it to which he promptly ignored.

__

When it was time for the festival they all got dressed up in their kimono and yukata and off they went to the festival. Izuku and Chip don’t have many  _ good _ memories of their younger years but attending the festival wasn’t all that bad. He had to avoid Mr. and Mrs. Midoriya as they walked around with their little girl because he had to be at it at the same time as the rest of them but Izuku would usually have a path to take then, just starting at the other end or different row of the festival stalls. Sometimes in his younger years Nurse Hope would walk around with him but most times she had to work the emergency stall just in case someone got food poisoning or something. Up until Serena decided he was her friend for real he would have to avoid her too so her friends didn’t see them together. He began to disappear from them for a while until she stood up for their friendship and they began to go together. Izuku even had some fond memories of the fireworks, never the campfires, up until time kept drawing on and even those got ruined for him. But they were not ever a bad experience. The times with Nurse Hope she was able to go get food for the both of them so the stalls couldn’t refuse her and they ate good, warm food. He and Chip were able to get out of the basement and see the night sky again. Nurse Hope even bought him one of those Ninetales fox masks that when he wore he could walk around it without anyone knowing who he was! The Vaniville festivals were never a  _ bad _ memory so he felt himself getting just a bit giddy going to another festival, even if it was a bit different as this wasn’t Vaniville Town obviously.

__

The night was dark but the lanterns lining the stalls and streets kept a hue of orange light all around them. Bustling people in between stalls raised laughter and conversation to the air. The smell of fried food and sweets swirled around. The smell of seafood was strong. Pokemon and humans alike wore yukata and kimono and enjoyed the festivities together. One could tell who were the natives of the small portside city by their traditional yukata and kimono that weren’t bought off a street vendor the night before and instead had pendants representing their family culture. Most natives had water type pokemon so either they didn’t have them out or you knew they were native by their type and thus you also knew the tourist but they all mingled as one. It was a time to celebrate the city and the start of the new fishing season, though fishing season was every season for those here as that was most of the residents’ income here.

__

“Ooh ooh! Look at that! A game!” Nemuri pointed off in a direction. Izuku found pleasure in seeing the woman so excited. He felt like he was sharing just a bit of his own past with the two. The game in question was a shooting game with pellet guns that you used to shoot down cans and depending on how many you shot down you got a prize corresponding. Izuku played it once or twice growing up but the mask made it hard to aim properly. “You too, Izuku,” a fake gun was passed to him. Izuku blinked.  _ Me? But I-  _ “Whoever gets the most wins,” Nemuri declared. Dad was already paying the booth employee.  _ Oh. Right. I’m allowed to do stuff now.  _ Izuku and Nemuri took aim.

__

* **pop** * * **pop** * * **pop** *

__

“Aw, sorry, guys,” the booth boy snapped his fingers. “No luck.” Izuku felt himself get pulled out of the booth. Dad took the seat right next to him and slammed down a few dollars. Nemuri sighs. “Shouta always hated those types of games that cheat you out.” Izuku looked up at her. “Cheat you out?” “When Yamada and I are able to drag him out of the house,” Nemuri explains, “Shouta always tries those claw games that cheat you out of prizes and money so he ended up developing his own way of beating these games out of annoyance because he knew we would never stop coming to drag him out of his house.”

__

* **pop** * * **pop** * * **pop** *

__

The booth boy’s jaw dropped. “C- congratulations, sir!” Dad got them all down. “Pick a prize from the top row, please!” Dad looked over at Nemuri. “Well, pick one.” “Awwww, Sho!”  _ Ah, I’ve heard of this. Boyfriends winning gifts for their girlfriends at arcades and stuff like this. _ Izuku and Chip were learning a lot about the good side of relationships in this trip.  _ Will I be doing that one day? _ He found himself reeling back at his own train of thought. He doesn’t even like anyone like that! He doesn’t even think about that stuff usually! Dad and Nemuri were rubbing off on him too much. Izuku’s not the type to date or love… He’s too depressing. No one likes him like that. It’s better to not wish for things like love in the first place.

__

* **pop** * * **pop** * * **pop** *

__

Booth boy sweatdropped. “C- congratulations, sir! Again!” Izuku looked up. Dad had gone again. The raven-haired man looked over at him. Izuku blinked. “What?” “Pick one.” “Eh?!” The top prizes were giant pokemon plushies, all water types of course. Nemuri got a Golduck. Izuku looked up at the row of stuffed pokemon. His eyes landed on the Froakie one. “Can I get one for a friend?” he asked. Dad followed his line of sight. He took a sharp breath in realization. “Yeah. We’ll take the Froakie.” The booth boy pulled it down. It really was massive! He had to take a minute to position it on his lap and Chip had to move to Dad’s-

__

* **pop** * * **pop** * * **pop** *

__

Izuku’s head snapped up. “S- sir…” the booth boy bit his tongue. “C- congratulations…” “Alright,” Dad looked back down at Izuku. “Now one for you.” Nemuri, Izuku, and everyone watching Dad continue to win sweatdropped.

__

Izuku ended up with a Lapras and they had to put it on a small trolly to push around because their arms were full. Chip rested on the stuffed Lapras’ back. It was quite funny watching a boy in a wheelchair getting pushed while he pushed the trolly. “That was so cruel, Shouta,” Nemuri teased. “Did you see that poor boy’s face when you tried to go again?” Izuku snickered. “They shouldn’t have tried to cheat Dad out.” “Eevee.” Dad and Nemuri smiled down at their sons who had sufficiently loosened up being around so many people in such a crowded place.

__

It was such a stark contrast to how he spent festivals like these in Vaniville Town even though the scenery looked similar. They ate grilled Magikarp and Izuku and Chip got to try taiyaki for the first time. They played a couple more games too like balloon pop but they gave away anything they got to little kids around them. 

__

“Lookie here!” Izuku, Chip, and Dad turned to Nemuri who had entered a booth unknowingly. She turned around with a Tentacool mask on. “Tentacooooool,” she lowered her voice like five octavaves. Izuku covered his mouth to try and keep from laughing. Nemuri removed it and stuck her tongue out at him. “Let’s get one and take pictures!” Izuku watched as Nemuri made Dad try on a plethora of different masks. “Vee,” Chip looked up at him from beside him on the Lapras. Izuku reached over and pet the small pokemon. “Are you having fun, Chip?” he asked quietly. Chip rubbed against his hand. “Eevee.” “Yeah… Me too.”

__

Like in the corner of his eye caught Izuku’s attention. The greenette looked over into the passing crowd just in time to see a young girl in a kimono run by, a lit sparkler in her hand. It felt like ice had been dumped down the teen’s back. “Oh? Why is everyone going that way?” Nemuri looked over. A woman ran up to the child to stop and chide her for running with the sparkler. Izuku’s eyes were glued to it like a Venomoth to a flame.

__

“The bonfire and firework show is about to start,” the shopkeeper replied. Izuku’s hand shakily moved to cover his mouth. He felt like throwing up.

__

\-----

__

_ ‘It burns! Daddy, stop! Please! It hurts!’ _

__

\-----

__

“Umbreon,” Umbreon alerted his trainer to the man’s son’s distress. A hand came to cover his eyes. The Froakie plush is moved to the ground. Dad slowly pulls Izuku forward to his chest. “Don’t look at it,” he whispers. But in the darkness Izuku can still see the way the flames flicker, feel the way they crawl up his body. He can’t breathe. It hurts. Smoke hurts. “We need to go.” Nemuri nods sharply. “We’ll buy these, thank you.” It’s a quick rush back to the hotel. They were just outside of it when-

__

* **BOOM** *

__

Izuku and Chip’s head swing towards the sound. In the sky a bit off where the festival was a massive explosion of light and color. Fireworks. Izuku reels back. “No…” Tears fill his eyes. The elevator makes it worse. It’s too small, too tight, the sound of the explosions outside are too loud. “Please…” He pulls at his hair, hyperventilating.

__

* **BOOM** *

__

“Stop it!” Izuku screams. “Eevee!” Chip wails, covering his head. He doesn’t register them getting on the bed, the blanket being thrown over them, or the way Dad presses his hands to his ears as he holds him close to his chest. Nemuri holds Chip in a similar fashion.

__

* **Boom** * * **Bang** * * **Pop** *

__

The sounds are muffled but still there. He knows they are still there. He can feel them.  _ It burns!  _ Izuku didn’t know how long firework shows lasted. What felt like eternity was only thirty minutes. With one last- * **BOOM** * -all was silent aside from his own and Chip’s uneven breathing and his own heart beat pounding in his ears. He sniffled. “Shh… It’s alright. You’re safe now.” Izuku shakes his head. “It burns…” “It won’t much longer. It’s all in your head. Just breathe.” Dad’s voice was so kind, so comforting. Izuku felt so, so tired. The blanket was slowly pulled from his head. Izuku looked up with wet eyes at his father. The lights in the room were off.

__

“Sorry,” Dad apologized. “I knew it had to be soon but I lost track of time..” Nemuri let Chip out as well. Izuku let his body relax against his father’s body. “I- I’m sorry,” he whispered. “It was s- such a good day too…” 

__

“It still is!” Nemuri piped. The rustling of a paper bag sounded and out came three masks. Nemuri smiled. “The night is still young, Izuku, Chip.”

__

They all curled up under the covers, Izuku, Chip, Nemuri, Dad, and Liepard and Umbreon too. Nemuri reached over and turned on the lamp. Izuku looked up and saw Dad and Nemuri wearing their masks. Dad’s was a Kingdra, Nemuri’s was a Seadra, and Izuku’s was a… Horsea.  _ It’s the evolutionary line _ , the thought hit him. He doesn’t know why the thought hit him so hard and yet so welcomingly. “Gather in everyone.” Liepard held Nemuri’s phone out with her long tail so she could still be in the picture too. “On the count of three say ‘Festival!’ One. Two. Three!”

__

“Fest- Breon-Vee-Lie -ival!” * **Snap** *

__

They took another with the masks on the sides of their faces so they could see their faces in it as well. Izuku smiled as he looked down at the picture on his phone. “Oh yeah! Liepard, could you get the bag of snacks we brought? I left them over by the bathroom,” Nemuri asked. They had bought extra dango and taiyaki.

__

“Dad,” Izuku tugged on his father’s yukata, “how do I change the screen on my phone?” Black eyes stared at him for a second. “You want that picture to be your screensaver?” he asked. Izuku nodded, blushing a bit. “I- I thought a picture of our family would be n- nice,” he said quietly. The woman beside him hiccuped, tears in her eyes. Izuku felt his cheeks heat up even more. Dad hummed. “That is nice. Here, let me show you.”

__

They set the picture of them with the masks on the side of their faces as his screensaver on his phone. The masks were just visible enough to know it was Kingdra’s evolutionary line.

__

Nemuri wiped her eyes. “How about a game of cards?”

__

They played it on the ‘boy’s bed’. They laid out the extra taiyaki and dango and ate as they played though it was a bit cool by now. Umbreon and Chip played as well as a team using Liepard’s tail to prop up their cards as she rested on the edge of the bed. Even though it was already 2 in the morning, the festival lasting a lot longer than they thought it would, they stayed up for another two hours playing cards on bursts of sugar from the taiyaki and dango and cracking dumb sugar-high jokes.

__

The fireworks may have scared him and Chip for a second but Izuku thinks that day might have been his favorite of all of the days so far, even if it was only their third day at the hotel, or fourth if you can’t the day they arrived.

__

____________________________

__

* **thump** *

__

“Ah.” Shouta looked to his side. Izuku awkwardly still in a criss-cross position but fell onto his side. He was down for the count.  _ One. _ Shouta looked over at Chip and Umbreon.  _ Two. Three. _ He looked over at Liepard who had long fallen asleep.  _ Four and… _ Shouta looked up at his girlfriend whose head was bobbing. He quietly put away all of the cards and pulled his girlfriend and sons under the blanket before getting under himself. “Sho…” Nemuri murmured. He looked down at her. Her tired teal eyes seemed lit with joy. “He called us his family. Me too.” Shouta smiled. He reached over and turned off the lamp. “I know.” Nemuri closed her eyes. “I’m so happy…” Her breathing evened out as she fell asleep.  _ And five… _ Shouta leaned over and kissed her on the forehead.

__

“Me too.”

__

____________________________

__

* **Ding Ding** *

__

**BEST CLASS (1-A)!!!:**

__

**Izuku:** _ <insert picture of him and the others in kimono and yukata> _

__

**HumanCharger:** Looks like fun!

__

**PINKY:** They disappeared on vacation and left us to do work!

__

**CanYouSeeMe?:** Awwww you guys look like a family!

__

**IcyHot:** Are Midnight and Aizawa-sensei dating?

__

**PINKY:** AHHHH CONSPIRACY THEORY!

__

**Insomniac:** Did you guys just figure that out?

__

**MANLYMAN:** Not everyone knows them as well as you do Shinsou.

__

**Insomniac:** Fair.

__

**PINKY:** SO THEY ARE?!

__

**Prez:** It is not our place to speculate about the love lives of our teachers.

__

**Prez:** At any rate, it is late at night and all of you should be asleep for we do have school tomorrow.

__

**SurroundSound:** You are up too, Iida so you have no room to talk.

__

**HumanCharger:** Yeah! Tell him!

__

**Prez:** Kaminari, unless you are willing to be up at this hour to study then it is fine but I think your lacking grades speak for themselves.

__

**SurroundSound:** Oooh, shade.

__

**OvenMaster:** Big burn.

__

**HumanCharger:** Right in the feels!

__

**BoomBoomExplodoMan:** Y’ALL BETTER SHUT THE HECK UP BEFORE OR MAKE YOU!

__

**PINKY:** He said y’all! He said Y’ALL!

__

**HumanCharger:** What are you??? A country bumpkin or something?!

__

**BoomBoomExplodoMan:** SHUT IT!

__

**Insomniac:** I mean, he did come from Vaniville.

__

**PINKY:** That’s so small!

__

**SurroundSound:** How do you know this?

__

**Insomniac:** Izuku used to live there.

__

**HumanCharger:** He really is a country bumpkin!

_   
  
_

\- Somewhere in the dorms an explosion went off. -

_   
  
_

**HumanCharger:** … Goodnight.

__

**PINKY:** Good night.

__

**Insomniac:** Night.

__

**SurroundSound:** Good night.

__

**OvenMaster:** Good night!

__

**MANLYMAN:** Night!

__

____________________________

__

“Are you sure about this, Izuku?” Nemuri asked. Izuku nodded sharply. “I want to see the beach at least once. I might not get another chance.”

__

“You make that sound like you are going to die,” Dad grumbled as he pushed open the gate at the edge of the pools that lead to the beach. “I could always take you during summer break.” Izuku shrugged. Dad lifted him from his wheelchair. Nemuri folded it up and carried it and the crutches. Liepard and Umbreon balanced the bag with the food and the blanket between them. The small family crossed the sand, already donning their swimming suits.

__

“Give us a second. You really don’t want to stand on the sand in bare feet,” Nemuri stated as she and the pokemon laid out the blanket. “Especially not sit on it.” Izuku nodded. He had heard that it gets really hot, even with the slight chill to the air with the season. When the blanket was all laid out, Dad set Izuku down on it.

__

Nemuri sighed and laid down, stretching her arms over her head. “The sun feels so nice!” “You did put sunscreen on, right?” Dad asked. “Of course!” She looked him up and down. “You could use a tan yourself, you know?” Dad rolled his eyes but nonetheless slid his sunglasses on and laid back. Izuku himself stayed up a bit at the edge of the blanket to mess with the sand, running his hands through it and the like. He watched the other beach goers. The children running around on the sand, those making sand castles,some swimming in the ocean and testing the waves. In the distance a bit further off he saw Hinari and Bokuto waving at him. Izuku hesitantly lifted a hand and waved back.

__

The beach was peaceful.

__

“Okay, okay, carefuuuuuuul!” Nemuri chided as Dad slowly lowered Izuku to the ground. “I- I don’t know about this,” the boy said. “I’ve got you,” Dad promised. “Just stretch out your legs. Trust me on this.” Izuku swallowed. He stretched them out just a bit to the water below. They decided that Izuku and Chip minus well get at least a bit of taste of the water. Izuku’s toe just barely tapped it. “It’s cold!” he yelped. “It is still winter, Izuku,” Dad deadpanned. Izuku’s feet firmly settled on the ground but his legs shook. It was so hard to stay up. Dad held him by the arms. “Stay with him, it’s fine. I can take your weight.” Izuku nodded. He practically hung off of the man. Dad repositioned him so that Izuku’s arms were wrapped around his waist and they could stand side to side.

__

“You too, Chip,” Nemuri put the Eevee down slowly. Chip could stand on his own, he just couldn’t walk all that much or far. “Vee!” Izuku laughed as Chip splashed back because of the temperature of the water. The greenette looked down and watched as the water washed over his feet and ankles. It felt good.

__

A few people around them that had seen them at the pool here and there smiled at the small family. It was good to see those who obviously didn’t have the best life have such a good time.

__

Izuku sweatdropped. He could feel his leg giving out as he slowly slipped down. “I’ll go get the wheelchair,” Nemuri noticed and went to get it. The sand underfoot was a bit stiffer now, wet and condensed so it could rest on it with only sinking a bit. You still couldn’t move with a wheelchair on the sand though. Izuku slouched in it with a sigh. “I thought my legs might beak all over again!” Dad huffed. “Let’s  _ not _ attempt anything like that again. Like. Ever.” Izuku the others chuckled.

__

“Liepard!” Umbreon splashed the cat-like pokemon with water. “Breon!” The two chased each other. 

__

Izuku likes the beach.

__

Their last day was just as great as the last few days. Izuku hasn’t felt so relaxed in a while. He didn’t have to worry about anything or anyone. Well, mostly. He didn’t like all of the people around but he thinks that is just the paranoia. He couldn’t help that. Either way, he had Dad and… Nemuri… and they were good enough.

__

“Well?” Nemuri came out in a black dress that went to her knees. “What do you think?” Izuku tilted his head. “It looks nice,” he said. She grinned. “And you look simply dashing.” Izuku blushed. He was in his first real pants since getting out of the hospital, some black khakis. He also wore a white button up top tucked in. “And I don’t? I thought  _ I  _ was your boyfriend over here,” Dad huffed, wearing the same thing but he had a black tie on.” Nemuri wrapped her arm around him. “You look good too. Now come on! Food awaits!” For their last ‘event’ on their trip they decided on ‘fine dining’ and by them he means Nemuri, of course. Sadly pokemon weren’t allowed in the restaurant. Umbreon and Liepard were back at the hotel but Chip wasn’t quite fine without Dad there still so he was in his pokeball in Izuku’s pocket. They would bring back food for them later.

__

The restaurant in question was a fancy seafood restaurant and when Izuku said fancy it was like the fancy that he didn’t think could happen in this small city much like the hotel. He felt super out of place there but the food was good. Izuku doesn’t know if he is supposed to be hearing all of these supposed ‘horror stories’ about past UA classes taught by Dad and Nemuri but he sure is enjoying them. Here he thought he would have to be uptight and fancy but apparently not. No one else is either. It may be a fancy restaurant but everyone was just enjoying themselves. The food was really good too and don’t even get him  _ started _ on the dessert. Izuku thought he might just implode!

__

They brought meals back to the hotel for their pokemon and Chip was just as pleased with the meal.

__

As the festival was still going on for another couple of days, Nemuri had gone out and got them ear plugs for the night. They didn’t completely cancel out the sound and Izuk and Chip found themselves plastered to the adult again but they did help significantly. By the time Saturday rolled around and they had to pack up and leave, Izuku and Chip almost didn’t want to leave. They didn’t want to have to tell their friends that they were leaving the hero course soon. They didn’t want to have to go to physical therapy in another hospital or attend therapy to tackle the much needed to be tackled mental and emotional scarring the two obviously had that kept them up most nights. But alas, they were leaving and heading back to Lumiose City. Farewell, Coumarine City.

__

“Are you ready?” Dad asked. Izuku nodded, putting his bag on his lap. Nemuri held the door open for them. Izuku looked back at the hotel room. He took a deep breath.

__

“U- um… Thank you… for this week,” he said. “It was really nice. And fun. Me and Chip enjoyed it a lot.” Chip nodded. “Eevee.” Dad ruffled his hair. “I thought it was about time we got away from all of the stress. If just for a week.” “Yeah.” 

__

They made their way down to Dad’s car. “You guys are leaving?” Hinari walked up from the front desk. Nemuri nodded. “Yeah, it was just a week stay. It was great getting to know you. Tell Bokuto hi for us, alright?” “Alrighty! See you around, Aizawa’s!” The three and their pokemon waved as the woman went further into the hotel. An hour and a half later and they were back in Lumiose City. Nemuri left them with a tight hug. “Call me anytime you need.” Izuku slowly reached up and wrapped his arms around her. He didn’t say anything. Right now, his emotions about the woman were a bit messy. He couldn’t tell if it was motherly or not but he knew that even if he would see her at school he still didn’t want her to leave. So he just kept his mouth shut and hoped his willingness to hug back was enough. It was.

__

Izuku all but collapsed on his bed. He doesn’t sleep in it anymore because he sleeps with Dad more often than not but it was still his bed and he still enjoyed that homey feeling it gave. Izuku looked at the Lapras plushie sitting grand in size in the middle of his room.  _ Oh. Right. _

__

____________________________

__

* **knock knock knock** *

__

Ochaco sighed as she closed her textbook Seriously, a whole chapter in a week? Her hand was cramping bad. “Who is it?” No response. The brunette huffed and stood up from the small table in the middle of her room. She crossed the distance and opened the door. No one was there. She looked down to see a giant Froakie plush. There was a picture taped to its head. Ochaco took it off and looked at it. Tears instantly filled her eyes.

__

It was from the start of the school year. Long before anything had happened, even before Izuku’s home life scandal came to light. She had taken it with her phone and sent it to Izuku after he got one. It was of her, Izuku, and Tsu. Izuku had his legs kicked up on his desk, piercings and all with his tongue sticking out. Tsu was standing to his left and Ochaco was sitting on Izuku’s desk with the peace sign held up. They had just started hanging out after the battle trial. It was one of Ochaco’s favorite pictures and the only other two people who had it were Tsu and Izuku.

__

The brunette wiped her eyes and took both items inside. She hung up the picture on her wall beside her bed. Ochaco opened a private message between her and Izuku.

_   
  
_

**Ochaco** :

__

Thank you.

__

…

…

…

__

**Izuku** :

__

No problem.

__   
  


A lot has happened but Ochaco is so glad she came to UA.


	30. School Festival

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first years get their licenses and the school festival happens.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late chapter! How is everyone? We are reaching the end of our story soon! Enjoy!

“So… um… We, m- me and Chip, w- won’t be coming b- back to UA n- next year…”

The class was silent. Izuku and Chip sat at the front of the class on their first day back fidgeting slightly in the wheelchair. Honestly, while it was sad and they’d miss their friends no one in the class was really shocked or surprised. Not even Denki himself burst out in shock.  _ I mean, like, look at them!  _ He still felt guilty about the training camp and Denki doesn’t ever think he won’t but he also knows that this wasn’t 100% his fault. Izuku and Chip had been through a lot. It was probably for the best for them to get out of heroism. Finally, Iida raised his hand.

“Will you two be transferring to general education then?” the stern boy asked. Izuku shook his head. “I mean l- like… out out. T- to a different school.” Denki’s eyes widened.  _ That _ did catch his attention. “S- sorry for bailing o-”

* **BAM** *

Everyone jumped. They all looked towards Bakugou who kicked his desk. “Shut the hell up, nerd. Stop freaking apologizing. You ain’t bailing, you’re taking care of your dang self for once in your jacked up life. If you think we’d get mad at you for that then you’re stupider than Dunce Face over there.” Denki slammed his hands on the desk. “Hey! I’m not a running gag to test brains to!” The class snickered. Kirishima nodded. “We are just wondering how we are going to keep in contact without you here.” “And make sure you didn’t really peel over this time,” Tanaka mused. Ashido nodded wildly. “Just because you aren’t here anymore doesn’t make us less friends!” “Yeah!” Denki shouted. “Cause we know that is what you were thinking, wasn’t it, Izuku?” The greenette and Eevee stared at them in stunned silence. 

_ An open book, _ the entire class thought.

“Well,” Aizawa-sensei started to push Izuku and Chip back towards their desk, “it isn’t like they are moving. They still live with me, you know? We live literally connected to the dorms.” He stopped and went back up to the front of the class. “So you can see him anytime and it has been decided that he is permitted to enter the dorms too. His room might be taken if a student gets moved into the hero course during next year’s Sports Festival but that is all.”

“I have a room…?” Izuku asked. Shinsou nodded. “Yeah. You kind of weren’t around for us to tell you that but it is on the first floor. It’s not really furbished or anything though.” The greenette narrowed his eyes. “Who says furbished in a general sentence anymore?”

“Anyway,” Aizawa-sensei moved on, “I know you are all excited about the upcoming school festival but I think you should all be more worried about something a bit more prominent. Seeing your progress and unwilling experience in the hero field already, some of you have already been starting at agencies even without your provisional hero licenses. The license exam is in two weeks. Within that time we have to do two things. One, you all need to create your own super moves of sorts. Something you only use once and it is a 100% chance knock out to the villain. Of course it will take a while to refine but that is what your next two years at UA are for. Second, we all have to go to the Battle Chateau. Not all of you will be able to even participate in the license exams.”

Iida’s hand shot up. “What do you mean, sensei? I thought all hero course students do?”

Their teacher shook his head. “The Battle Chateau is a place in between Cyllage City and Camphrier Town. While it is a general place for heroes and civilians alike to go and just fight for fun, there is a ranking system depending on how many fights you win. The first rank is Baron or Baroness and you earn that title and the white cloak for winning one battle. These are only Pokemon battles by the way as civilians participate in them. In order to take part in the provisional license exam though, all hero course students must have that title.”

“Isn’t that a bit unfair?” Jirou asked. “We are fighting civilians so obviously we will have the upper hand.” Aizawa-sensei smirked. “I wouldn’t underestimate the civilians who go to the Chateau. Their pokemon are stronger than you think. Also, you won’t be for the Baron title. You will, of course, be battling other hero school’s pokemon. It’s been going on for a while, our schedule just hasn’t been exemplary to the normal hero course schedule-”  _ Yeah, no kidding, doc  _ “- but for the time up until the license exams three schools hero course students, any year depending on if they had gotten the title the year before or not so they can take the exam, meet up there and duke it out in one-on-one pokemon battles to thin out the crowd for the exam. That means if one of you don’t win your battle you won’t be taking the exam this year.”

Everyone sweatdropped.

“So what is your rank, sensei? You said there were more.” Sato spoke up. Aizawa-sensei turned around and wrote on the chalkboard. “There are six ranks in all,” he wrote them down. “Baron/Baroness, Viscount/Viscountess, Earl/Countess, Marquis/Marchioness, Duke/Duchess, and then finally Grand Duke and Grand Duchess. Each rank is decided on a certain number of wins. One for the Baron title, 5 for the Viscount, 20 for Earl, 40 for Marquis, and 140 for Duke.”  _ That escalated quickly! _ “As for the Grand Duke or Duchess, there are only five in Kalos. It is the top five with the highest number of wins. Heroes aren’t allowed to become a Grand Duke or Grand Duchess because they would most certainly be filling those spots and it is also a fun place for normal civilians to have pokemon battles so they want the civilians to keep coming back. If heroes dominated again it wouldn’t be all that fun or desirable to the civilians. As for me, I am a Marquis. I don’t really care much for those titles as I am an underground hero but I had some rather bothersome friends who dragged me there with them every time.”

“What are these cloaks you speak of?” Iida asked again, ever the one to need to know everything. Aizawa-sensei pulled his infamous yellow sleeping bag from under the podium. “Every rank has a cloak that goes with it,” he said. “It costs to participate in the Battle Chateau and some of that pays for these cloaks. Lucky for you your school pays for your entrance though after you are graduated you will need to be paying the quarterly fee yourself. I brought my cloak as an example. Those with the Marquis or Marchioness title have red cloaks presented to them.” He pulled out a red cloak. It had a maroon colored shoulder pad on the right shoulder and gold accents on the shoulders and lining. Aizawa-sensei pulled it on over his shoulders. It fell closed in the front. “This is the Marquis cloak.” Many of the students oohed and awed. “As for you, if you pass then you will get white ones. After school we will be working on your special moves. On Friday we are going to the Battle Chateau. For the rest of homeroom however you may plan what your class will do for the school festival or whatever. That’s all.” He rid himself of the cloak and hunkered down in the corner in his sleeping bag.

Immediately hands shot up and ideas were shouted out. Iida, being the Class President he is, stood up and walked to the black board. “Quiet!” he shouted above the noise and effectively shutting them all up. Denki, since the camp attack, had found himself glancing over in Izuku’s direction periodically just to make sure he is there like he had a sense of duty after his last screw up. He saw the greenette take a breath of relief. “We will be doing this democracy style. Any ideas, please raise your hand and wait to be called on.”  _ Good going, Iida. _ Denki gave him a mental thumbs up. 

Maid cafes, haunted houses, all of the basic ideas went up. Pokemon battle rallies even. 

“That’s not a bad idea, Jirou,” Izuku’s voice caught Denki’s ear. He was looking over at Jirou. The girl who didn’t think anyone had heard her blushed. Everyone looked over. Funny. For the boy who always seems to be falling apart he never lets others feel self conscious about themselves, always reassuring them. If only he could pep talk himself. “Jirou, did you have an idea?” Iida asked, calling her out. The girl scratched her head. “I- I just thought maybe we could do a show or something, like a band or dance? You’ve seen how the other courses have started to look at us angrily. I just thought maybe something like that could bring the school together again or something.”

Yeah, they’ve all noticed. It’s like they blame the hero course for everything that has happened at UA this year. Specifically the first year class. When they pass in the hallway or walk through the lunchroom glares are sent their way and rude comments are passed around.  _ You think we wanted this to happen?! Do they think we enjoy constantly being under attack?! _

“That’s a great idea, Jirou!” Ashido piped up. The bell rang and they had to leave it at that but everyone was super hyped at the idea.

No one really questioned as to  _ why _ Aizawa-sensei stayed for all of their classes. They didn’t have to. Izuku and Chip kept checking if the man in question was there so they all sort of assumed it was to keep him placated. During their hero lessons they all learned soon enough that not ‘becoming a hero’ for the two meant not participating in those either. While the class worked on special moves, Izuku and Chip sat in the corner of the gym working on homework and advertently ignoring the training. They did flinch at the louder noises and look around for Aizawa-sensei each time one caused his fear to spike.

It was probably then that it truly sunk in for Denki, and much of his class, that Izuku and Chip weren’t going to be with them after this year and they only had three more months of their first year of high school. It was… saddening. Disheartening to see their classmate like this and to know that it wasn’t only his previous home life that caused it but also the hero field and that they would all be entering this field which has caused them already so much mental and emotional trauma.

Wanting to spend as much time with them as possible, they decided to wait until Izuku and Chip returned from therapy to discuss the school festival with them later that night.

“Isn’t that them?” Denki pointed out of the windows of the dormitory. Aizawa-sensei was pushing Izuku up the path but they turned away and went to their house. “Should we go get them?” he asked. “Don’t,” Iida said from the kitchen. “Let’s give them an hour or so at least. Think about how your first day of therapy went here. Denki shuffled his feet. It was really uncomfortable having to unpack everything he had been harboring in his heart since the start of the year. All he wanted to do afterward was curl up in his room and cry. “I can’t imagine it would be any easier for those two,” Iida said solemnly. “Come, the rest of the class should be coming for dinner soon. We will prepare snacks for those two later.”

Denki felt too distracted to eat dinner though. His buddy was hurting!  _ Shouldn’t they be eating with us? It would make them feel better, right? Company is always a good thing!  _ Denki was the first one to volunteer to knock on the Aizawa’s door when the topic was brought up in the common room after dinner.

_ No more sitting around feeling bad about letting Izuku and Chip get kidnapped. _ Denki made his way to the hallway that led to the Aizawa’s house door. He crossed the distance and lifted his fist.  _ It’s about time I start making it up to my buddy for my mistakes! _

* **knock knock knock** *

____________________________

_ ‘Sometimes I feel like things would have been better if we were never saved at all.’ _

\-----

Shouta placed his hands on the counter and hung his head. The whirr of the microwave filled the silence. He wasn’t supposed to sit in for Izuku’s therapy but he wasn’t able to leave. Some things he thinks he was not supposed to hear. Kirishima Asa, Kirishima’s father, was the therapist they went with. They had spent the first appointment with him getting to know him and then today they got to business and Shouta had to sit through about thirty minutes of Izuku explaining  _ why _ he thinks he shouldn’t have been saved from Mr. Midoriya’s basement in the first place and it all revolved around others being happier or villains not attacking if he hadn’t and Shouta couldn’t freaking say anything!

* **thump** *

Shouta peeked into the living room. Izuku had just flopped onto the couch laying prostrate with his face in a pillow. Chip lay curled on his trainer’s legs. Pepper sat in the middle of Izuku’s back licking his hair trying to be comforting. Smokey laid next to the couch warming it up. They could feel the depression almost visibly seeping from the two worn out beings.

* **beepbeepbeep beepbeepbeep** * The microwave went off. “Izuku, it’s time to eat,” Shouta called. He tried, really, but Shouta couldn’t get the greenette to eat. So he wrapped up the food again and put it back in the refrigerator before walking over to the couch inhabitants. “Hey, kid,” he said softly, “mind if I join?” Izuku grumbled a bit into the couch cushion. Shouta felt a bit happy the boy was starting to be so open with him as to stop immediately obeying everything like a slave.

* **knock knock knock** *

Shouta was just about to sit when the door to the student dorms was rapped upon. Izuku lifted his head finally in that direction. “I’ll get it,” Shouta told him. Shouta stood up and went to the door. “Kaminari?” The yellow-haired boy stood in the doorway. “Do you need something?” Kaminari nodded. “Heya, sensei! We are talking about the festival and wanted to know if Izuku would like to come?” Shouta looked over his shoulder into the living room and sweatdropped. “I mean, I’m good with it having to come along and all but that is up to if you can get Izuku out of the house or not.” Kaminari saluted. “I’ve got it. Don’t worry!” Shouta moved out of the way. “By all means, then. Please come in.”

Shouta watched as Kaminari waltzed right in and sat right beside the couch with that goofy grin of his. Still, he could see the year had taken a toll on Kaminari as well. They were all exhausted. 

An old parable seems to fit. If one thing can go wrong expect that more can too. His class seemed to be the physical representation of that.

“Come on, Izuku,” Kaminari’s voice hits his ears. “It will be good to get your mind off of things and Ai- your dad is coming too.” Shouta blinked.  _ He changed the wording to make it sound more comfortable and appealing to Izuku. When did he learn to do that?  _ Whether they wanted to or not, his class had grown up way too fast, even the less intellectual ones. “We want you and Chip to be a part of this too.” The finishing blow. Izuku let out a tired sigh and rolled over before pushing himself upward. “Alright…” Shouta swallowed a sigh of his own. Progress is progress.

____________________________

Izuku listened to Kaminari ramble on about how Dad’s house was so big as they walked/rolled down the hallway. Smokey and Pepper came along too feeling rather left out recently which Izuku can’t blame them for. Dad followed a bit ways away just enough where Izuku could hear his footsteps so that was fine. Izuku didn’t particularly want to be here but he didn’t feel like moping around much either.

He wanted to sleep. Forever. And never wake up again. But then he wouldn’t get to see Dad or Nemuri again so he guesses he will hold off on that for now.

“Izuku!” Ashido’s voice piped. He looked up. Everyone had gathered in the common area. Iida had a white board and markers out and had written down all of the potential ideas for the festival already. The greenette in question sloppy waved back before he pulled to a stop beside the nearest couch. Hitoshi patted next to him. “If you can.” Izuku shook his head. “There aren’t enough seats for everyone.” “But there are.” Izuku looked around. Many had already gathered on the ground. There was pointedly a seat for him right next to Hitoshi.

\-----

_ ‘We want you and Chip to be a part of this too.’ _

\-----

Izuku thought about it for a moment before turning his wheelchair and going to that side of the room. With a bit of maneuvering, he settled on the couch next to Hitoshi.”Catch.” Izuku looked up just in time to see a packet of marshmallows fly across the room at him. “Ah-” Izuku scrambled to catch them. He deadpanned at Jirou who had tossed them. She just shrugged. “Allow me,” Sato took them and put a few on a slice of chocolate cake he had made. “Todoroki.” The bi-colored boy leaned over and melted them. “Am I your campfire or something?” “It’s too cold to go out right now,” Sato mused. True. It really was colder in Lumiose City than Coumarine City. It was passed back to Izuku. “Th- thanks.”

“Alright!” Iida pointed to the black board. “We have two weeks to the provisional licenses exam and then one until the festival. It’s a time crunch so we need to get this rolling. Our top three picks are the band submitted by Jirou, pokemon battle ring submitted by Bakugou and Kirishima, and the cafe submitted by Sato. Out of these, we will be submitting an anonymous vote in this hat.” He picked one up off of the coffee table that looked a lot like something Kaminari would wear. Probably was his. Hitoshi nudged his shoulder and passed Izuku a stack of notecards. He took one and passed on the deck.

Izuku doesn’t know what he could really do for any one of these but he liked the idea of a band or something to raise the spirits of the student body as a whole. He wrote down “Band”, folded the paper, and tossed it in the hat as it came around. Iida pulled them out one by one, making the tallies on the board as he went and reading them aloud.

“Band.”

“Band.”

“Band.”

“Fight fest.”

“Band.”

“Cafe.”

“Band.”

In the end- “We have fourteen votes for the band, three for the fight fest, and two for the cafe,” Iida announced. “The band it is!”  _ That wasn’t even a fight, _ Izuku joked to himself. He watched as his classmates gathered around to plan it, the songs and band members and everything. Some would be dancers, their pokemon would be used for special effects and the like as well as a few others such as Uraraka. Izuku gave his input here and there. “We might be able to contact Serena,” Hitoshi stated. Everyone looked at him. “She’s Izuku’s and mine fiend training to be Kalos Queen.” “Wow! A contestant!” Ashido squealed. Hitoshi nodded. “She might be able to help with choreography.” Ashido waved her hand wildly. “Me too! Me too! I used to be in a dance group until the dorming systems!”

Izuku leaned his head against his fist as his arm propped up on the couch armrest. He closed his eyes and listened to his classmates’ excited chatter. “Of course Izuku will be designing our outfits, idiots.” Green eyes shot open at Bakugou’s voice. The blonde raised an eyebrow. “You like all that dress stuff, right?” He sat up straight. “U- uh, yeah…?” He nods sharply. “There we go. Problem solved.” “We can contact the support course about getting them put together then,” Iida wrote down that on a pad. “And maybe Yaoyorozu from Class 1-B if she isn’t busy. Can you handle that, Izuku?” He tore off and handed the paper to Izuku who took it. “Yeah.”

_ I’m really going to be a part of it… _

“Maybe even dancing,” Ashido added. “It would be spinning around your wheelchair and using your arms only but you could do it if you want.” The greenette felt a small smile grow on his face. “Th- that would be fine.”

_ I am going to be a part of it! _

For the rest of the week, between school, therapy, and physical therapy, Izuku went around getting the measurements and ideas from everyone in regards to what he thinks they would like in a band costume. When the day came to go to the Battle Chateau, he brought his sketchbook along to sketch out a few rough drafts that they could pick out from later. The Battle Chateau was grand and fancy and stood up to the pompous names of the titles it held. 

“Okay, class,” Dad stopped outside of the Chateau, “we are going to get you signed up and then watch a few fights while we wait for the other schools we will be facing to get here.” They went to the second floor where a balcony overlooked a few small battlefields. At the end of each field was a small box for the trainer to stand in and give commands from.

“Look, look! It’s Marchioness Viola and Marquis Grant!” a woman cooed from the balcony. “Perfect,” Dad hummed. He turned to the class. “Viola and Grant are actually professional heroes,” he whispered to them. “You know them as Lock Rock and Flash Ambush but for privacy purposes here we will address them as Viola and Grant. Most go by their first names here as a sign of dignity.” The class nods. “Both are gym leaders. Viola is a bug type gym leader and Grant is a rock type. You may end up challenging them someday so let’s go watch their fight. The class went out on the balcony. Viola, or Flash Ambush, had short blonde hair with curly strands on either side. Grant, or Lock Rock, had tall, busy brown hair. They both wore red cloaks similar to Dad’s. Izuku remembers seeing them in hero costume when they covered the gyms in class. 

“Marchioness Viola and Marquis Grant,” the announcer spoke, “both are at 139 wins. They will be fighting for the title of Duke/Duchess. May the best pokemon win. Start!” It was a fierce battle between Onix and Surskit but Onix won out with a rock tomb, trapping the Surskit and getting above it to land the final blow.. “Surskit is unable to continue!” the announcer said. “The battle goes to Marquis Grant! Congratulations!” Everyone on the balcony clapped. Two Talonflame flew down with a royal purple cloak, sliding on Grant’s shoulders. “With 140 wins, Marquis Grant has been elevated to the title of Duke. Congratulations, Duke Grant!”

“That’s so cool!” Kaminari whispered. Ash nodded rapidly. “I am so going to win this and get me a cloak too!”

“Well, well, well, pretty confident in yourselves, huh, UA?” They all turned around to see Professional Hero Ms. Joke. She had pastel green hair and a pirate-esque costume. “Joke,” Dad sighs. “‘Raser!” She runs up to him, latching onto his arm. “It’s been forever! Let’s get married!”

“EH?!” the class shouts. Izuku narrows his eyes.  _ Dad is dating Nemuri. What does she mean ‘get married’?  _ His eyes widened.  _ Is he che- _ “No!” Dad all but shouts staring right at Izuku. “I’m not,” he says hurriedly. “Joke,” he turns back to her, “is a hero I used to work with as in the beginning of my professional career at neighboring agencies. That is all.” “Aw, how cruel, Eraserhead,” she pokes his shoulder. “We met up again here. Destiny, I call it!”  _ I don’t get it. Are you allowed to date more people than one? I thought that it was illegal to be married to more than one person? Does Nemuri know? Is this what happened to Mr. Midoriya and Mrs. Midoriya. _ “AH HA HA!” Kaminari laughed loudly, recognizing the confusion written over Izuku’s face. The greenette startled, jumping a bit. “Ha ha.” Kaminari and the rest of the class’ faces fell. “Sorry, Ms. Joke,” he grinned but it looked fake, a warning, “that’s not very funny.” She blinked, taken back by the coldness of the class of first year students.

Dad sighed. “Ms. Joke’s quirk, Outburst, makes people laugh so she jokes around like that a lot. She teaches at Ketsubutsu Trainer’s Academy. Joke, isn't your class second years?” SHe nodded. “But we didn’t go last year.”

“Oh my goodness, it’s UA!” A black-haired boy and blonde-haired boy led a class of supposed Ketsubutsu kids. “You’re practically famous for the worst luck in all of the hero schools!” the boy grinned. “But I think it’s pretty cool how you survived it all. I’m Shindo Yo!” he held out his hand to Iida. Bakugou slapped it out of the way. “Don’t act all corny when your eyes speak differently.” Izuku narrowed his eyes.  _ Is the whole class this way? _ He eyed Ms. Joke.  _ Is it her influence? _ Shindo’s grin fell into something dar, a sly fox. “Guess I’ve been found out. Even we were called in for that little war you created, UA. Watch your back; we have the advantage here.”

A dark air settled over the UA first years. “ _ Excuse me? _ ” Uraraka hissed from the back. Ms. Joke and Dad stepped forward. “Shindo, that wasn’t funny,” Ms. Joke reprimanded them. “You know they didn’t plan for that. “Either way, we are just one of the few schools here to get their titles so let’s get signed in already.” The Ketsubutsu students huffed and turned around.

“Hey, dimwits!” Bakugou stormed up. The Ketsubutsu students glared over their shoulders. “You picked a fight with the wrong crowd.” He smashed his hands together letting off a small explosion. Izuku closed his eyes, ready for his short temper. Smoke escaped Bakugou’s mouth. “We’ll kill you for that.”

It must have settled in on the Ketsubutsu class that they weren’t really looking at teenagers anymore and instead a group of war-torn adults at this point who would readily tear them apart if they dare threaten them because the Ketsubutsu students seemed to pale. Dad whacked Bakugou on the head. “No death threats, problem child. Still,” he glared over at Ms. Joke and then her class, “we don’t take too kindly to threats. You can just ask the villains what happened the last time they tried. Don’t get your hopes up just because you are second years. Yeah, we’ve had a lot of attacks on us but don’t forget, my students took all of them down and can do the same to you. As the teacher, I return that statement. Watch your backs because that was a villainous ploy you tried there and villains writhe at our feet.”

“Ah ha ha!” Ms. Joke pushed her students away. “W- well we better get going and sign up!” But as she walked away she could only think about how much her old friend had changed. It was… scary. The whole class was.

Unbenowest to them, the other hero courses had shown up midway and heard a good portion of that and felt their own sense of dread going up against the UA students. With good reason too. Izuku couldn’t watch a good chunk of the battles. A lot of them had fire as it was a pretty popular element to be born with. But the students from other schools soon got a taste of the “Bad Luck Class of UA” as they were now being called. Something Izuku did notice was that everyone in his class had grown a bit more violent in their fighting. Something dug into them was the fear of death at a young age. Their pokemon too. Though it was just the trainers giving commands in these battles, they took the fighting survival spirits of their trainers and wrecked havoc on the other schools.

As just first years, all of Class 1-A’s pokemon had entered their third or second evolutions, most their third and final ones. Bakugou’s Typhlosion exploded away it’s opponent. Ashido’s Goodra all but decapitated another. Ojiro’s Machamp knocked one unconscious and far out of the ring, straight into the battle in the field over. One by one, battle by battle, the UA students plowed through those that looked down on them for their “bad luck class” or for being first years. 

At the end of the day, the students of Class 1-A, sans Izuku and Asui, stood before all of their opponents in their new white cloaks. Hitoshi stared down his opponent from Ketsubutsu, that blonde girl, Nakagame Tatami, as she stared at him in udder defeat.

“Sorry. Looks like our luck just turned.” And his battle was called and Hitoshi was donned a white Baron cloak.

They went home that day victorious but felt bittersweet. Izuku felt a bit guilty about it. After all, he was the reason the attacks continued to happen, whether the threat was gone or not now. He caused so much angst. Dad gathered everyone in front of the dormitory when they got back. He clapped his hands to get their attention. “Great job, everyone. I didn’t doubt that you could do it. A pity your opponents did. Now, I know you are all so excited to post on whatever social media about your achievement or whatever but do not lose focus. Next Friday is the actual exam and all this next week is straight working on your special moves. Go rest up from your long day. You won’t have afternoon hero classes and last hour is canceled.” They had gone in the morning. “That is all.” He turned to leave. Izuku spun around his chair to follow.

“Where are you going, Izuku?” Hitoshi’s voice had him turning his head. The rest of the class was waiting for him too. The purple-haired boy pointed at the sketchbook in Izuku’s hands. “You were working on those all day and for the past few days, right? We want to see them.” He gestured to the expectant class. “We only have two weeks until the festival. It isn’t like we have time to choose later and learn our stuff, right? You coming?”

Izuku looked back at Dad who was waiting a bit aways. The raven-haired man sighed. “I am going to go get some papers to grade and we will meet you all over there.” Izuku smiled a bit. He looked back over at Hitoshi. “I- I’ll be there soon.” And that is just as they did. Izuku was eager to show his classmates his designs. When he got to the dorm commons, the place looked different. They had moved the couches to a corner to make room for dance practice. The door opened as he was just wheeling in and Iida walked in with Sakaguchi Clemont from Class 3-H’s support course and Yaoyorozu Momo from the Class 1-B hero course. “They are here to see if they can make the outfits,” Iida explained. Sakaguchi scratched the back of his head. “I’m not sure what all I can do but I am willing to help in any way. I think it is great what your class is doing.” Yaoyorozu nodded. “I am offering my full support.”

They gathered around to go over the designs. At first, Izuku was a bit scared. They all crowded around him to see each individual page. He couldn’t see Dad anywhere. After the first minute or so though as they discussed his designs he felt right at home talking about stuff like this. He had designs for girls and boys and pokemon alike. “Why do the band members just have t-shirts and black slacks?” Jirou asked. Izuku averted his eyes. “I- I just thought cause, like, I’m not really sure how bands and stuff go. H- haven’t really been able t- to see them much really. B- but I thought, like, don’t the band members usually wear casual clothes and then the d- dancers wear flashy things?”

If Izuku thought he was going to be berated he was wrong. They just nodded and moved on, a few “Smart” or “Good thinking”s here and there. As it would turn out Yaoyorozu could make the outfits and so, with a load of food nearby, she got to work. Sakaguchi helped with blueprints or certain things like confetti cannons and laser lights and promised to get them over by next week so they could start practicing with them. “Alright, here is the first final product for the girls, boys, pokemon, and band members,” Yaoyorozu stated. Izuku turned his head from where he was processing how to make his wheelchair spin in one place. 

Out walked the test subjects who would be wearing them. For the female dancers they had yellowish-orange tuxedo crop tops with buttons on either side of the middle on white straps that held up their same-colored tutu-length skirts that had brown belts and white fluff lining the bottom. They had red ties and wore purple latex bodysuits under the outfit to hide their stomachs and underwear when they jumped and spun. The male dances had similar outfits but instead of skirts they had long pants without the fluff. As for the pokemon, they just had the tuxedo tops. The band members would have orange t-shirts with a white UA symbol on them. They had black slacks to go with it. That way the fancy stuff would not catch on their instruments accidentally.

Izuku  _ beamed _ . Everyone smiled at his full grin, something that had been missing from his face for so long.  _ It’s so amazing! I can’t believe it! She made them! What I designed! It’s right in front of me! _ He felt like crying. He didn’t but he felt like it.

“I can only make a few sets at a time,” Yaoyorozu said, “but I’ll be back and forth during the week to make sure they are all done by the festival.” Izuku nodded. “Th- thank you so much!”

Dad walked up and tapped his shoulder. “Time to go. You have physical therapy.”  _ Ah… _ He waved goodbye to everyone. “You two stay here and practice,” he told Smokey and Pepper. They gave gleeful yips and went back to practice. Even though he was depressed about having to leave to go to physical therapy Izuku felt rising excitement in himself. It was all really coming together.

He didn’t go back to practicing afterward, though. Izuku and Chip were flat out exhausted. Their legs hurt something fierce. “Welcome home!” Nemuri’s voice called from the kitchen as they came through the front door. The smell of katsudon hit his nose and Izuku felt his mouth water and heard his stomach growl loudly. “Nemuri, why are you here?” Dad walked in after closing the door. She poked her head out of the kitchen with a smile. “Just to visit.” Izuku looked her up and down.

\-----

_ ‘’Raser! It’s been forever! Let’s get married!’ _

\-----

Izuku swallowed thickly. “Izuku? Chip?” Nemuri waved. He shook his head.  _ Dad said it wasn’t true. Ms. Joke was joking. Joking! _ He didn’t realize he had started caring for Nemuri. He’d hate for her to get hurt. What if it was by Dad? What would he do if Dad was actually cheating on Nemuri with Ms. Joke? What would he do? “H- hi,” he greeted. “Eevee!” Izuku let out Smokey and Pepper. He chuckled quietly as Pepper immediately jumped up and perched herself on his shoulder. 

“Dinner is almost ready” Nemri assured them. Izuku nodded. “I- I’ll be in the sewing room,” he said and rolled off. It was hard to shake the feeling though. Izuku kept glancing between Nemuri and Dad during dinner. Even though it was his favorite meal, Izuku could barely taste it. His already meager portion size seemed to shrink that day. With a hair ruffle, Nemuri left. Izuku watched her go wistfully.  _ What if Dad really is cheating? Could I afford to get close to her? What about family? No, maybe this is how relationships are supposed to go. It’s okay. This is okay. Maybe she knows. Then that’s okay too. It’s okay, right? So, like, double dating?  _ “Izuku, CHip, come here,” Dad patted beside himself on the couch. Izuku held his tongue. He carefully transferred himself from his wheelchair to the couch. Chip curled up on Dad’s lap but it was obvious his mind too was in turmoil.

“I’m not cheating,” Dad started as if he could read Izuku’s mind. The greenette lowered his head. “I saw how you acted during dinner. I promise that is just how Ms. Joke jokes. She doesn’t understand that you would take that poorly. It isn’t right to date two people at once, especially if they don’t know about it. I wouldn’t do that.” Izuku bt his lip. He felt his hand twitch.  _ He’s mad at me for thinking about that. I know Dad wouldn’t do anything bad. I know. I’m sorry. I’m sorry! _ Izuku flinched when Dad wrapped his arm around Izuku’s shoulders and pulled him close. “Don’t worry. Nemuri will be around for a long while. Please don’t draw away from her.” Izuku nodded slowly.  _ Right. This is Dad. That’s not a good thing. Dad is good. Dad is okay. He wouldn’t do that. Staying close to Nemuri is okay too. Nemuri is okay. Okay… _ Izuku let out a shaky breath and relaxed against his father.  _ It’s okay. _

Sometimes it was hard to remember that the people around him now were good people and that things really were the real, safe meaning of ‘okay.’ He was still learning about all of these things like joking and smiling and trusting. And here Izuku thought he tested his father to the fullest degree possible.  _ I’m a bad son... _

The next Friday was the Provisional License Exams. Since they didn’t only fight Ketsubutsu at the Chateau some of those students did pass. Anyone who saw their class there and was at the Battle Chateau last Friday didn’t dare look at them or make anymore comments about them being the ‘Bad Luck’ class but they didn’t stop the schools that weren’t there and did.

“It’s UA!” a loud voice yelled. The class turned around as they walked to the auditorium for the first part of the exam. A boy with a buzzcut in a black uniform and hat came running up to them. Almost immediately the whole class scowled thinking the same thing:  _ Oh boy, another one.  _ And then the boy bowed so deeply, so harshly that his forehead hit the ground and started to bleed. “You guys are so cool! I always wanted to go to UA!” He stood up. “I’m Yoarashi! Inasa! Yoarashi!” A boy covered in hair and another boy with hair covering one of his eyes walked up. “Yoarashi, please do not make a bad name for our school,” the one-eye kid sighed. Yoarashi laughed. “I can’t wait to fight you!” His classmates began pushing him away. “Bye!”

The Class 1-A students stared as they passed by. There were quite a few meaning this was a strong school too. Izuku caught ‘Yoarashi’ glare at Todoroki as he passed.  _ What’s that all about?  _ “Be careful around them,” Dad suddenly warned, garnering the classes attention. “They are from Shiketsu Trainer’s Academy. That boy you just met placed first for the UA recommendation exams.” They all bugged. “What?!” “Then why isn’t he here?” “Did he get expelled?!” Izuku and Todoroki met eyes. They blinked a few times before their eyes widened. Izuku looked up at Dad. “It’s the wind guy!” Everyone looked at him. “He had this super strong wind quirk!”

Dad nodded. “Shiketsu is also our rival school for the top hero school. I don’t know why but he turned down the offer to come to UA. Watch out for the whole of Shiketsu though. Just as people looked down on us, make sure not to do the same with any student here but especially those from Shiketsu. Now, go in and get changed. They will have people to direct you.” They all bowed. “Yes, Sensei!”

“A- ah!” Izuku held out his hands. “J- just, erm, good luck!” he waved. “Show them like you did at the Chateau!” His classmates smiled. Bakugou huffed. “Who do you think we are, nerd? Of course we are going to blow them all the way to hell and back. Just you watch us. I expect to hear your cheering.” Izuku nodded sharply. “W- we will!” “Eevee!” He watched as his classmates left. Izuku followed Dad to a different area, a stadium which was a lot larger than anything he’s seen. Probably due to the fact that there were at least 1,000 students here. He wonders how many there would have been without the Battle Chateau filtering. The stadium was similar to the USJ. It had different biomes and landscapes such as flat plains and cities. It was all scattered about. There was a ring around it above for seating for spectators.

“Isn’t this where the Hero Ranking Battles happen?” He had seen approximately three battles from them at the Pokemon Center in Vaniville Town. Not consecutively. He would sneak out and sit and watch one on the years it was happening with Nurse Hope. Since they only happened every three years he didn’t get to see many but they were broadcasted all over the world. He saw one when he was six, one at nine, and one at twelve years old. They go on for a month so they can get through all of the heroes in Kalos without leaving blank spaces in the region for villains to rise up while the heroes are fighting. He remembers the stadium at least. Dad nodded. “The Heroistic Stadium is the biggest stadium in Kalos so it is usually held here. It’s about to start.”

After a quick explanation, the first part of two out of the exam begun. Each examinee had three buttons somewhere hitable on their body and they were given balls to throw. Have all three of your buttons hit by a ball and you were out. Get out three people and you pass to the next part. Only fifty people could pass. Izuku held Chip close to his chest.  _ You can do it, guys! _

“‘Raser!” Izuku flinched and whipped his head around.  _ Ms. Joke… _ The heroine walked up. Dad rolled his eyes. “What do you want, Joke?” She grinned and sat with a seat in between.  _ Good. Dad is taken! _ “Your fly is down,” she grinned.

“It’s not.”

“It is! It really is!”

“I have a person who wouldn’t let me leave home if it were,” Dad huffed. Izuku inwardly smirked smuggly to himself. Ms. Joke stuck her tongue out. “You’re no fun!” Only about half of her students made it through the Battle Chateau battles but she was here with the other half.

Izuku watched his classmates run around. Some tried to separate from the pack like Bakugou and Todoroki. Kirishima and Kaminari followed Bakugou. Without meaning to, a lot of his classmates got separated. “So did you tell them?” Ms. Joke spoke up again. Dad shook his head. “They don’t need the warning.” Izuku looked up at him. “Tell them what?” “Every year there is basically a UA hot list because the other examinees already know your quirks from the Sports Festival. UA is always a massive target right from the get go. I didn’t think your classmates needed the extra motivation. They know what they need to do.” Izuku nodded and turned back. A giant gust of wind had then shielding themselves.

‘ **WOAH WOAH WOAH! 150 EXAMINEES WERE TAKEN OUT BY ONE PERSON!** ’ the announcer spoke over the intercom. 

Izuku’s head snapped to the origin of the wind.  _ It’s that kid. _ Yoarashi had created a massive cyclone swirling balls around to hit people while his pokemon, Altaria, flew around at lighting speed and kept them in one place. A truly effective way to do it. “He’s the first to pass,” Dad mused. An explosion caught his attention in the same city landscape. Izuku turned his head away, pressing it to Dad’s arm. He knew that explosion. It was Bakugou’s. He couldn’t look at it though. He had got accustomed enough to Bakugou’s explosions to not immediately have a panic attack. As long as he looked away it would be fine. He didn’t need to see it anyway to know that Bakugou would pass.

That one-eye covered hair boy was challenging Bakugou, Kaminari, and Kirishima alone like he thought less of them. He was spewing some junk about them being all high and mighty and boisterous with all of the trouble they caused this year and that they needed to be put in their places. Bakugou and the others were having none of that. It seemed a bit choppy at first. Bakugou and Kirishima got turned into meatballs but their pokemon came in to save the day and Kaminari was able to use the distraction of the pokemon to get in close and get a hand on the rude Shiketsu boy and put him out of commission. Kaminari got the rightful kill and they moved on. It wasn’t long until they overwhelmed their next battlers and those that tried to trap them with numbers. They all passed. Time was ticking though. Izuku saw more and more of his classmates passing but there were a few stragglers and the spots available were going fast. Uraraka and Sero teamed together with his tape and her levitating rocks to trap people to the ground, Spewpa using string shot to keep them glued down and then Florges floating above them and knocking them out cold.

“UA is ruthless,” Izuku heard a few other teachers from other classes speaking.  _ Knocking them out is the best course of action. They could try to fight back while they walk up to hit their targets. What if someone doesn’t have good aim. They would have to get close. It isn’t like they are killing them or anything. They are barely even hurting them. _

Shoji and his group broke through one of the smartest people, a girl with an IQ quirk, with sheer force. Aoyama gathered the rest of the remaining Class 1-A students using his laser as a homing beacon. They then used their pokemon to protect their targets while they used their own quirks to knock out anyone who got close. In the end, all 18 of them passed to the second part. 

“Can I let out Pepper and Smokey?” Izuku just thought of it. Dad nodded. “It shouldn’t be a problem.” Izuku nodded and let them out. In the intermission he told them about what happened. When it was time for the second part of the exam, Izuku found himself leaning forward against Smokey, head between the Houndoom’s horns, and taking in the warmth.  _ I hope it gets warm sooner. _

The second part of the exam was a rescue operation. Many people and pokemon, young and old, were shrew around a seemingly war torn area, under rocks and the like. They had to rescue everyone.

“Just so you know beforehand,” Dad whispered, “there will be a mock villain attack in the middle of this conducted by a hero so don’t freak out.” Izuku nodded. “I hope they won’t…” “They won’t,” Dad reassured him. “You guys have had more of a taste of villain attacks than anyone here. If anything, your class will handle this the best.”

Dad was right, he had nothing to worry about. His classmates were a little iffy on the whole rescue part, more in tune with fighting villains than anything now, but they got it together pretty quickly. When the villain attack started with a boom it was announced over the speakers.

‘ **VILLAINS ARE RAIDING THE CITY! HEROES, PROTECT THE CIVILIANS AND TAKE CARE OF THE THREAT!** ’

Izuku is glad it was announced. He doesn’t think his classmates would have thought it to be an exam measure if it wasn’t. Todoroki and Yoarashi were the first to arrive on the scene of the villain fight led by Gang Orca and his sidekicks.

“What are they doing?” Izuku questioned. Dad narrowed his eyes. “They’re arguing?” It was true. Todoroki and Yoarashi seemed to be fighting each other more than the ‘villains’. That was, until Todoroki grabbed the much taller boy by the collar and drug him down to his eye level. Izuku didn’t hear them speaking but he knew Todoroki was speaking some sense into the wind boy.

\-----

“I don’t care if you hate me,” Shoto yelled, “and I certainly don’t care if you hate Endeavor but this is not the time to be doing this! Villains are attacking and civilians are in danger and need to be protected. If you can’t get over your stupid grudge against me for long enough to take care of the immediate threat you are no better than Endeavor and you dont deserve to be a hero!” He pushed the boy back up. “Now suck it up and let’s take care of this!”

\-----

No matter the fight those two were having, Todoroki wasn’t about to ignore the threat for it. He was trained not to both by Endeavor and by way of this year’s misfortunes. It wasn’t long until the rest of his class turned up to help fight. The other schools focused more on the rescue efforts which they got done quickly.

‘ **THE EXAM IS OVER!** ’

It was announced and everything came to a standstill. Those nearby to the ‘villain’ fight stared in shock as the sidekicks of Gang Orca were mostly on the ground unconscious, aside from those scattered randomly around the arena. Even the Professional Hero himself was on one knee.

Izuku watched all of his classmates look up at the sky or down at the ground to take deep breaths. They were all so tense. Memories were flashing in their minds. Nightmares, the screams of the battlefield. A few were silently comforting one another with their hands on their shoulders. “It might have been too soon for them,” Dad said more to himself than anything. “They just started counselling.” The nearby teachers who heard him didn’t have anything to say to that. Their misconceptions about UA were instantly shut down. Izuku grit his teeth.  _ What? NOW you feel bad? Freaking adults. _

Dad led Izuku, Chip, Smokey, and Pepper down to the scoring board where his classmates and the other fifty who were in the second portion of the exam would find out if they passed or not. Once everyone was changed back into their school uniforms, they all gathered in front of it. Names began listing. Those who weren’t on it didn’t pass but… He watched as every one of his classmate’s faces lit up.

“We passed!” Kaminari shouted. “We all passed!” “Of course we did, dimwit!” Bakugou shouted. “We didn’t survive all those attacks just to have nothing to show for it!” They all laughed. Oh to be able to laugh at your own pain. Todoroki walked over to where Yoarashi was looking forlorn at the board. He didn’t pass. “I don’t understand your grudge against me though I do against Endeavor,” Todoroki said. “I hope that you find your way someday and join us on the hero field.” Todoroki held out his hand. Yoarashi took a sharp breath and took Todoroki’s hand. “I’ll be waiting for you,” the bi-colored male said. Izuku smiled a bit. They were all growing in their own ways.

They went out for ice cream to celebrate their victory and getting their provisional hero licenses but he could tell they were all still a bit shaken up by the ‘villain’ attack. PTSD would do that to you. Still, they cheered and whooped and the ice cream shop workers were enjoying the income the class brought in while Dad was loathing the new hole in his wallet from then.

“Ash, move in a bit more,” Izuku commanded as he held his phone up to take a picture of his class holding up their licenses. “A- alright, on the count of three say ‘Heroes!’ One… Two… Three!”

“ _ HEROES! _ ”

* **SNAP** *

Izuku sent it to the group chat. “Now we can fully focus on the festival,” Uraraka commented as she ate her ice cream next to him. He nodded. “I- I think it will be our last big fling this year.” “Let’s hope for all years.” “There are still the Sport Festivals for third and second year,” Todoroki reminded her. “ _ Besides _ that.” “Let’s put our all into this festival,” Ash punched the air. “Let’s end our first year well!”

“Yeah!” the rest of the class raised their ice cream cones in mutual sentiment.

The week leading up to the School Festival was as hectic as ever. They got placed in the school auditorium. The festival would go on for two days, the first day for students and the second for parents to come and see how their students were doing in school and enjoy the festivities with their children. As much as they could they got in practice in the auditorium. The lights and cannons were all set up on a button board that Dad, who got roped into it, would be manning from behind the curtains on stage right where Izuku would be closest dancing to. Most of the songs were written by Jirou herself though a few were a class effort. The point was to get the point across that they were both sorry about the rough year and determined to show that isn’t what they are all about. Yaoyorozu had all of their costumes and outfits done three days before the festival. In case you were wondering, everyone from Class 1-B also got their provisional hero license. Between dance practice, a bit of singing practice, costume revisions and sizing, school, therapy, and physical therapy Izuku felt like his head might explode. He wasn’t really given much time to dwell on his depression aside from the days of his therapy and nightly nightmares but he was just fine with putting them on hold until the festival was over. Before he knew it, it was the morning of the School Festival.

“Attention, Class 1-A!” Iida clapped his hands in front of the commons. “Today’s the day but we aren’t doing our first show until this evening.” They were all in their casual dress so as not to ruin the surprise. “Enjoy the festival to the fullest. I think we all need this time of relaxation and fun. However, do not forget the time. Meet in the back of the auditorium at 3:30. Our show starts at 4. Until then, enjoy!” “Yes, prez!”

“Izuku,” Hitoshi walked over, “let’s go together.” Izuku nodded.

“Wait for me!” Ash came bounding up.

“Mind if I join?” Uraraka came over.

“I’ll suppose I should tag along,” Iida pushed up his glasses.

“Oh! Oh! Oh! Me too!” Kaminari ran over.

Todoroki quietly strolled over. “Me too.”

“The whole gang is here,” Kaminari grinned. “Off we go to the festival!” With their pokemon following, because they wanted to enjoy the festivities too, Izuku and his friend group dove deep into the festival. “One sec,” Dad held out his hand. They all stopped in the row of booths set up by different clubs and teachers. He checked his phone. “This way,” he waved them along.  _ What’s he doing? _ The seven teens shrugged their shoulders and followed. Dad stopped outside the weight lifting clubs booth. “We are… lifting?” Uraraka tilted her head. “Waiting,” Dad corrected.

“Izuku! Hitoshi!” A very familiar voice hit the greenette’s and purple-haired boy’s ears. They whipped around just in time to see a dirty-blonde with blue eyes run up. “Serena!” Izuku gasped. The girl jumped and swung her arms around Hitoshi. Their other five friends blanched. “What are you doing here?!” She moved to hug him too before standing up straight. “Del!” Delphox hugged them too. Hitoshi grabbed the fox-like pokemon’s face. “You evolved!” “Delphox,” she chirped.

Serena giggled. “The festival is open to the general public for a short time too so I sort of asked your father if he could secretly get me here without you two knowing,” she stuck out her tongue.”

“Ah! You’re Williams!” Kaminari suddenly burst out, pointing at her. “Williams Serena, the youngest up and coming coordinator! I’m a huge fan!” Serena tilted her head, a finger to her cheek. “I’m just called Serena on stage though,” she winked causing the boy to blush madly. “Come on, come on!” She took Izuku’s wheelchair handles. “I want to see the infamous UA for myself and meet all of your friends!”

They ended up playing a bit at the weight lifting booth. The challenge was to see who could lift the most without their quirks. They each wrote down their phone numbers and names on a piece of paper so that if by the end of the festival they were the one with the heaviest weight lifted they could be called to receive the final prize. Boy were the Weightlifting Club members surprised at how strong the hero students were. They weren’t necessarily as strong as them who focused mainly on arm strength like that but they got close. Iida was a lot more ripped than any of them realized benching 200 pounds even. Izuku himself only got around 145 pounds but considering he hasn’t been working out for a while aside from moving himself around in his chair he thinks that is pretty good. He got made fun of by Hitoshi for being weaker than the 155 pound benching boy.

“Imagine if Kaminari was touching me while I lifted,” Ash laughed as he walked. “I’d be so strong with the electricity!” Uraraka smirked. “Oh yeah? Imagine if I were to use my quirk.” They all laughed. “You’d set a world record!” A flash of black caught Izuku’s eye. He looked over his shoulder as a head of curly black hair disappeared behind Cementoss. Izuku bit his tongue. Why did he feel so uneasy?

Izuku and Hitoshi introduced Serena to everyone. She and Ash hit it off  _ really _ well and was that blush he saw on her cheeks? Who knew Serena went for foreigners? It felt much like when he went to that small festival in Coumarine City with Dad and Nemuri but it was a lot more upbeat and festive almost being run by students and with all of the people running around. Every so often though he’d see that head again and Izuku would feel his gut twist and then Dad would quickly draw his attention away. Actually, as time went on it would see they all did as though they knew something he didn’t. And then he saw her clearly. Izuku’s hands halted on the wheels of his wheelchair. It was like the world came to a stand still when he met the black eyes of none other than Midoriya Inha.

They were going in opposite directions, Cementoss as her guardian accompanying her through the festival. She blinked.

“Akatan- Oh, wait… Izu… ku?” she tilted her head. He slapped his hand over his mouth.

\-----

_ ‘Akatani.’ _

\-----

Izuku wanted to throw up. The world seemed to spin around him.

\-----

_ ‘Mama? Who’s dat?’ _

_ ‘He’s just a kid from town, sweetie.’ _

\-----

Anger boiled in his stomach. And hatred and fear and disgust. All at once it was like a bomb dropped on him. His rather chipper mood was cast into the deepest pit because it was  _ her.  _ Izuku hated a lot of things in life: Mr. Midoriya, villains, fire, ect. One of the things he hated most though was  _ her _ . Seeing her again so suddenly it was like the world was closing in on him. His vision started to spiral and his chest felt too tight to allow air in and out of it. He felt like he was dying. Izuku clutched at his shirt, doubling over his knees. Tears pricked at his eyes.  _ Why is she here? Is she going to take Dad and Nemuri away too? Get away! Get away!  _

\-----

_ ‘Ak~a~ta~ni.’ _

\-----

“ **Izuku.** ” Dad’s voice cut through the fog like a knife in soft butter. His head snapped up. They weren’t in the crowd anymore, instead at the end of the rows of booths behind one where not many people were around. “Chip.” Chip’s head snapped up from his lap. Dad placed his hand on either of their heads. Around them their friends stood, backs to them for privacy but surrounding them in a circle as though to guard them.  _ Ah, so they had seen her before. That’s why they kept drawing my attention. _ “It’s fine,” Dad said quietly, softly. “Midoriya is Cementoss’s charge. She is being kept at UA.” He knows this. He  _ knows  _ this but… “Don’t worry,” Dad smiled. :She can’t do anything and she most certainly won’t take anything away from you.” Tears slowly began to fall from his eyes. Izuku wiped them away pitifully only for them to be immediately replaced by more. “I- I’m sorry, I-” “Don’t,” Dad stopped him. “Stop apologizing for panic attacks and anxiety attacks. It’s only natural. You associate her with a lot of bad memories.”

“I- I’m sorry,” Izuku glanced past him and past his friends at Midoriya who was peeking out from behind Cementoss. He ducked his head. He didn’t  _ want _ to hurt her but he couldn’t look at her. It made him sick. She looked so much like  _ him _ . Mr. Midoriya’s genes really decided to make themselves known in his daughter. Dad sighed and stood up, turning to Cementoss and Midoriya. “I don’t think it is a good time for them to meet again just yet. Maybe another time.” Cementoss nodded.

“Aizawa,” the stone hero cleared his throat. “Younger Aizawa,” Izuku glanced up through wet eyes. “I know you have misfortunes but we will be at your show. Inha truly does wish the best for you.” He smiled a bit. “She wanted to know how her brother was doing.” Izuku’s heart twisted. She nodded a bit from behind the hero. “I- I’ll be cheering you on, Izuku!”

_ ‘Izuku’. _ She called him  _ ‘Izuku.’ _ The greenette felt the chains around his heart loosen a bit. Maybe just maybe, somewhere deep inside he just wished for his  _ sister _ to see him, the real him. After all, they did have a family bond. 

When Cementoss and Midoriya left to see the rest of the festival, Izuku dropped his head feeling his breathing turn erratic again. “Wh- why?” he wiped at his eyes furiously. “It w- was going s- s- so well!” Chip whimpered, pawing at his own eyes. Pepper liked his hair from on top of Smokey’s head who stood behind them. A swab of cotton candy came into his field of vision. Izuku looked up. Todoroki held it out. “Izuku, by this point we all know very well that it will take a little longer than a few months to heal. There will be ups and downs like this so don’t worry about it.” His friends all nodded. Izuku and Chip sniffled, trying to dry their eyes. He took the cotton candy from his friend. “Th- thanks, guys…” They all grinned. “Now,” Kaminari pointed to the tents, “how about we enjoy the rest of the festival, huh? We got at least an hour until our show.”

Izuku and Chip still felt a bit off. They knew that somewhere in here was Midoriya and Cementoss and it just rubbed them the wrong way. Still, they tried their best to enjoy the festival the best they could. They had to say goodbye to Serena early and meet up with their classmates behind the auditorium.

“Are you going to be alright?” Dad asked as he helped Izuku into his pants. Izuku didn’t need the help but it did take him significantly longer alone and Dad wanted to check on him. Izuku nodded. “I- I’ll be okay.” Dad looked him in the eyes. “Are you going to be  _ alright _ ?” The teen gulped. He glanced down at the floor. “Y- you’re going to be there, right?” Dad nodded. “Right in the wing curtains. You will be able to see me in the shadows every time you spin around.” Izuku nodded, taking a few shaky breaths. “A- as long as you’re there I’ll be alright,” he finally replied.

The auditorium was filling up with students. Many came to see what the ‘Bad Luck’ class would do now. They came to chastise and throw tomatoes and trash at them. To give them grief for making their year at UA such a hard one. Some actually came for the show and to enjoy it but for the most part, the attendees were UA students that were  _ not _ happy with the hero course, especially the first years, and even more so Class 1-A. The stage was dark. Izuku could hear the crowd as he rolled onto stage along with the other on stage dancers. Behind him he could hear Jirou and Kaminari and Tokoyami plugging in their guitars to the amps, Bakugou steadying the symbols on the drums, and Tanaka plugging in the keyboard. He could hear the lights and machines turning on. Anticipation dwelled in his stomach. He took a deep breath and then… four o’clock hit. A spotlight shone on Jirou who was at the front microphone as their main singer. She grinned but Izuku could tell she was afraid.

“WELCOME UA,” she shouted “TO THE CLASS 1-A ROCKING HEROES! ARE YOU READY?!” Barely anyone in the crowd responded, dead set on making Class 1-A feel bad. Jirou didn’t back down. The tap of Bakugou’s drum sticks. Jirou took a deep breath. “LET’S GO!”

The entire stage came alive with music and lights. From above, Aoyama spun around like a disco ball with his quirk flashing in the middle of the room. Laser lights shot over the crowd. Pokemon already pre-hit by Uraraka’s quirk kicked off the walls and began dancing in the air. The girl herself swung from pieces of Sero’s tape tapping the hands of those who held them up and making people in the audience float as well. Before they knew it, the crowd was smiling. They couldn’t help but laugh and cheer at the fun. The lyrics of their songs reached their hearts. They could not ignore the pain and the determination of their fellow students any longer and instead joined in their songs of victory.

As Izuku danced with his arms and spun in his chair, he listened to the songs he was singing as well with them and to the message they gave. What they created was a story of songs. What started out as fear and then changed to determination and then to hope. To heartbreak and then to revival.  _ I want this to be real, _ he couldn’t help but think as he threw his hands up.  _ Want to feel that hope for real. _ Izuku saw the crowd shockingly vividly. He saw in the middle that little girl, Eri. She was on Togata’s shoulders smiling. That little girl who suffered so much was smiling.  _ I want to smile like that too! _ He saw Cementoss and beside him he saw Midoriya Inha. Tears filled his eyes.  _ I want to go back to when I could smile at her too! _

Little did he know, he wasn’t the only one crying on stage. They were all smiling but a good handful of them were crying.  _ So much _ had happened to them. Too much.

As it was coming to a close they sang the final song, Heroes Too, it was a song of their hopeful futures, a future they didn’t know if they would have just a short while ago. “Heroes too! We can be heroes too!” Jirou sang loudly and proudly. Izuku didn’t want this to end. He wanted to see this future they so confidently sang about.

“ **Just wait and see!!!** ”

As she sang the final verse Izuku felt a gust of air. Like a door opening wide for the first time Izuku looked through and he saw… the future. For so long he had dreamed about it. He dreamed about getting out of Mr. Midoriya’s house even if at that point he didn’t believe he ever would. At one point he dreamed about being the son of Aizawa Shouta even if at that point he thought that would never happen. He dreamed about a family and about joy and love and things other than this ever-present fear and hatred he always felt even if he didn’t know how to feel anything else. He dreamed about all of those things but never believed they would come true but here he was and here they were all coming true.  _ Just wait and see. _ Izuku looked off the stage as the crowd cheered and threw flowers and light sticks. He looked at his father and  _ beamed _ . It was no longer dreaming in an unseeable future. It was-

_ I can’t wait to see my future! _

On the second day of the festival, they ended it a bit early to give the crowd a message. Having worked with the Broadcasting Club and gotten it approved by Principal Nedzu, all over the UA campus on every screen their message was broadcasted so that even those who weren’t in the auditorium could hear and see it. Jirou, as the woman already at the microphone, spoke up as the rest of them gathered on stage behind her with their pokemon and all.

“Hey, UA Trainer’s Academy,” she started. “We are Class 1-A, first years from the hero course. It sure has been a crazy year, huh?” Her tone was soft and calm, sure a different demeanor from the song she just sang. She was serious, as were the rest of them. “I am sure as many of you know, our class has been attacked multiple times this year. The attack at the USJ, the attacks during our internships, the attack at our training camp along with Class 1-B and where one of our classmates were kidnapped for a month, and then finally the most recent and deadly Lumiose City attack where we actually lost one of our classmates, Asui Tsuyu.” Asui’s picture flashed on the screen for a bit before returning to Jirou and her class. “We also know that many of you, students and parents alike, hold some resentment towards us for all that has happened. None of us could have expected or predicted the attacks and none of us wanted them to happen but still we full heartedly apologize.” They all bowed. “We chose to do a band for the school festival,” Jirou continued, “to bring the school back together again. I know that many people just view this as a hero school but there is so much more to it than just that. There is the General Education department and the Support Course too and they do and mean so much to the students and school as well. We sang to tell our story of pain, heartbreak, death, and the courage and hope to stand up again. We sang because we believe that not just us but our school as a whole is strong and we stand strong against the forces of evil together. This year really sucked and I won’t sugar coat that but we can look forward to a brighter future but we don’t want to do it alone. We want to do it with all of you. Thank you to all those who came and listened and continue to support us. We hope you will continue to into our next years as students here and in our lives as future heroes. We want you to know that you who have supported us, the student body and the teachers and especially Recovery Girl who healed us time and time again we came back from battles or training,” a few chuckled, “we want you to know that-” they all bowed,

“-  _ you are our heroes. _ ”

Safe to say, the festival was a success. There would probably always be those few that held their noses up to the hero course and they couldn’t blame them. The year  _ had _ been pretty rough. In the background of their own turmoil they didn’t realize the other departments were being affected too. Still, for the most part the student body came together to celebrate the victory and the future ahead of them. They couldn’t have asked for a better response.

“So we are totally doing this next year, right?” Kaminari asked. “Eh?!” Jirou jumped as she put away her guitar. The class looked at her expectantly. She blushed and looked away. “I- I mean, if you want to…” They all grinned at her. “UA tradition!” Kaminari punched the air.

Izuku got to meet a lot of his friend’s parents and siblings. “Oh so this is the Izuku you are always talking about!” Uraraka waved her hands wildly. “Mooooom!”

“It is so great to meet you,” Kaminari’s father held out his hand. “Denki always talks about his best bud Izuku.”

“Thank you for teaching Tenya to not be so uptight,” Iida’s brother grinned. “Look, we’re wheelchair pals!”

“Shotot has friends!” Todoroki’s sister cheered. “He never talks much at home so we were a bit worried.”

“I’ve heard a lot about you,” Hitoshi’s parents were both there, a bit awkward truly. “I’ve heard so much about you from the past years that I feel like I already know you,” his mother cooed.

It was great. After tearing down the rest of the day, Izuku skipping physical therapy for the day, Izuku and Chip practically collapsed in their bed at home. Pepper jumped on his back. “Pepperrrrrrr!” he sighed. Smokey dangled a piece of string for her to chase. Gratefully she got off of Izuku and went to play. “Sol,” Absol stood in his doorway. Izuku groaned. “Whaaaat…?” Dad poked his head in. “How does dinner sound?”

They ate in the living room watching movies and Nemuri even came over. Izuku had to reflect over his year at UA Trainer’s Academy. So much had happened. A lot bad but also so much good. After all he met Dad and Nemuri and Uraraka and Ash again and Kaminari and Iida and Asui and everyone. If someone would have told him that he would be living in a warm house and not in a basement, that he had friends and a family that loved him, that he would not be beaten and burned everyday only a few months ago Izuku wouldn’t have believed them. In fact, knowing the old him he would have laughed right in their faces. Izuku and Chip? Being happy? Safe? Warm? Having a meal everyday? What a great joke! Turns out it was reality now.

Izuku closed his eyes as he leaned against Dad’s shoulder in between Dad and Nemuri on the couch.

* **thump** *

Viridian eyes fluttered open. He looked down at his lap where a green and red box now lay. Chip lifted his head from Nemuri’s lap. “What’s this?” Izuku asked. “Open it,” Dad said. Izuku raised an eyebrow. He sat up and took the box in his hands. “It looks like a Christmas present,” he mused. “You weren’t exactly lucid during Christmas,” Dad said, “and we never gave you our Christmas present to you so Merry Late Christmas I guess.” Izuku blinked. He lifted the top off of the box. Inside was a stack of papers. Izuku picked them up and read the first one aloud.

“Adoption Form.”

Izuku blinked once. Twice. Three times. Then his head snapped up to Dad. The man smirked. “How would you feel about legally changing your last name to Aizawa?” Tears welled in Izuku’s and Chip’s eyes. Tears slowly dripped on the papers in his hands. Dad pulled them to his chest wrapping them in a tight hug. “Sorry it took so long,” he whispered. Izuku didn’t care though. The time didn’t matter. He was, in this very moment, probably the happiest he has ever been. He leaned up and looked up at his  _ father _ . “I would love to do that.”

…

…

…

“Well, it’s been a crazy year,” Principal Nedzu spoke at the podium in front of UA Trainer’s Academy a month and a half later. In rows the classes stood in front of him. “It is finally time to say goodbye to our third years and to welcome in the new age. I am so, so proud of you all for staying and surviving all of the trouble this school went through. So, without further adieu, congratulations to the third years for graduating and first and second years, we look forward to having you next year!” Hitoshi helped Izuku to his feet, the greenette holding himself up on his forearm crutches. He and the rest of the student’s of UA bowed. “THANK YOU FOR TEACHING US!”

That summer **Aizawa Izuku** finished and survived his first and last year at UA Trainer’s Academy.


	31. Finishing High School

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku starts at a new school and it goes...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is everyone?

* **knock knock knock** *

Izuku heard the house door get rapped upon. Which one he didn’t know nor did he particularly care. He was a bit too focused on his most recent project in the sewing room: making a shirt. It was the final project for his beginners online sewing course and he wasn’t just going to make a basic t-shirt. No, Izuku was too much of an overachiever for that. So he was working on a multi-colored, deep v-neck for Nemuri. He hopes she will like it. He has been working really hard on it. It is the colors of Liepard even.

He hears Dad go to the door and answer it. Despite his best efforts to stay focused, now his paranoia was getting to him. Izuku sighed and left the sewing machine. “Yena?” Pepper looked up at him. Izuku shrugged.

“Izuku, it’s your friends!” Dad yelled into the house. Izuku opened the door, maneuvered his wheelchair around it, and left the room. It was the end of summer vacation, at least for the UA students as UA started sooner than most schools, but Izuku was still wheelchair-bound in his house. He was able to slowly walk around outside now with his crutches but was ordered to use his wheelchair at home or at the dorms which he doesn’t really go anywhere aside from that but Dad has been going around with him outside to get a little bit of daily walking in. Ash whistled a mock catcall when he appeared from the hallway. “Looking good, stylist!” Izuku rolled his eyes. His bangs were clipped to the top of his head and his hair was pulled back in a tight ponytail and he had his glasses on like always for sewing. “What do you guys want?” It was Ash, Hitoshi, and Denki. Hitoshi pointed over his shoulder. “School starts for us in two days. We wanted to spend our last night of vacation having a sleepover.”

The greenette blinked. “And you want me to come?” They all deadpanned. “No, Izuku,” Hitoshi huffed. “We just came all the way here to rub it in your face- Yes we want you to come!” Izuku rolled his eyes. He looked over his shoulder at Dad who was now sitting on the couch. “Dad?” The man nodded. “Go ahead.”

Recent development in the past couple months of vacation and therapy sessions is that Izuku isn’t confined to Dad anymore. He still feels really  _ really  _ uneasy without him but can stand being separate for a few hours. He hopes school will be fine because he won’t be anywhere near Dad for like eight hours. They are working on it. Between the dorms and their house, Izuku can stand it as long as they are in either one of those places. He knows Dad will be here at the house so he thinks it will be fine.

His friends follow him to his room to pack a few items. Silly, right? When he lives in the house connected to their dormitory? But they like it to be as realistic as possible. “Pepper, Smokey, Chip,” Hitoshi calls. “You three too!” They all head over to the dorms. Lucky or not, they had no villainous complications over summer break so that was good. Everyone was looking still a bit more worse for wear than the other UA classes or any normal teenager but they were all doing a lot better as time went on. “Welcome! Welcome!” Mina cheered from the common room. All of the couches had been pushed back again but this time still in their formation. They just made room for all of the sleeping bags, pillows, and blankets. Everyone in class was there. She pointed to the sky. “Slumber Party commence!”

Izuku loved his friends, all 18 of them. When school ended last year he tried to leave the class group chat because he wasn’t part of their class anymore but he was immediately invited to rejoin and didn’t stop getting invites from everyone in the class until he did. He didn’t expect them to want to have much to do with him anymore but alas, they continuously pulled him from his house to hang out. Sometimes even Dad!

\-----

_ ‘Your part of the family too, Aizawa-sensei!’ Mina chirped. ‘At this point, I think it’s safe to say we are a bit closer than most classes.’ _

\-----

They never abandoned him and Izuku stopped trying to find reasons they would want to and trying to distance himself from them before the pain hit. He truly loved his friends and would truly miss them at his new school.

They spent the night watching movies, all decidedly without fire in it, and playing games. Fire is something Izuku never thinks he will be able to get over but his friends never minded having to find a move without a campfire scene, or cooking scene with open flames, or fire as a terrible tragedy to scare the protagonists or anything. They were all very understanding. During summer break he learned a lot of card and board games from them and they played many of them that night.

“Sweet and Sour time!” Mina piped. They had all gathered around in a circle on the floor of the commons room. She held up two fingers. “What is one thing you are looking forward to this year and one thing you are dreading going around to the right. Ochako, you’re first.” They had all pretty quickly gotten on a first name basis. The brunette tilted her head, thinking for a bit. “I am super pumped for rescue training. I did want to be a rescue-focused hero but we didn’t really get much of a chance to focus on that last year. One thing I am dreading is… starting without Tsu…” Izuku put his hand on her shoulder as he was sitting next to her. Mina hummed. “She will be with us in spirit, that’s for sure.” They had all gotten pretty used to their friends ups and downs. Some things couldn’t be helped. It wasn’t desired but most of Class 1-A, or Class 2-A now, had been diagnosed with PTSD and depression understandably.

Izuku went next. “I- I guess I am most excited for just a normal school for once. I played hookie most of my middle school years and some elementary school years out of spite and, well, last year couldn’t be called normal for even a hero school. I think I am looking forward to being a normal teenager.” They all nodded. “I guess I am dreading attending a new school and meeting new people there. I am technically quirkless now, I can’t have Chip with me, and I walk at the speed of a turtle. I’m the prime subject for bullying.” Katsuki averted his eyes. Yes, even Katsuki got his first name back. Still not the cutesy nickname Izuku used to call him. “Don’t worry, man!” Eijiro jabbed his thumb to his own chest. “If anyone gives you junk come get us. We’ll scare some sense into them!” They all nodded.

It went around the whole class. Many were afraid of a repeat of last year. They were all looking forward to hopefully  _ not _ a repeat of last year. “I think this year is going to be a great year,” Mina finished. “For all of us, even you Izuku.” She grinned. Izuku smiled back. “Y- yeah. I think so too.”

____________________________

“Hey hey hey,” Hitoshi looked up at Denki. The blonde pointed at the far couch. Izuku was curled up with his arms around his legs but they had gone limp as the boy began to drift off as the class watched Try Not To Laugh videos on the television. Hitoshi blinked. He doesn’t typically laugh much anyway so he didn’t really notice it but no one had laughed in a long while. Hitoshi looked around and noticed a few people sending glances in Izuku’s direction. They were all dead serious to not laugh. In fact, they seemed almost scared to move. They didn’t turn off the TV because Izuku, and a few others, had fallen asleep to the sound of it and didn’t want to disturb that. Hitoshi sighed. “He’s not a ticking bomb, guys,” he whispered, still being respectfully quiet. The purple-haired boy stood up and maneuvered his way through the bodies around the common room. He pulled Izuku’s blanket out from under Ash’s sleeping body that had collapsed onto about three people’s layouts. He also took the pillow.

“Careful!” Jirou hissed as Hitoshi approached Izuku. Violet eyes rolled. He draped the blanket over his friend and placed the pillow against the back of the couch just before Izuku’s head slumped against it, finally falling full asleep.  _ I hope he doesn’t have a nightmare tonight. _ “Yen!” Pepper snuggled her way under the blanket and under Izuku’s leg. Her snout stuck out. Hitoshi quietly chuckled. His movement and willingness to move around a sleeping Izuku had those still awake also gain the courage to move. Mina turned off the TV and the others began getting into their sleeping bags and under their blankets. “Espurr, can you turn off the light?” Hitoshi asked as he got under his own blanket. “Espurr.” The psychic pokemon used his powers to turn them off. Hitoshi checked the time just before he did.

_ Two in the morning, not bad. _ With that, he fell asleep.

____________________________

Izuku woke with a gasp, jolting upright. The sound of bustling people came to a halt. He was drenched in a cold sweat. Izuku’s head whipped around.  _ Where is he? Where is he?!  _ Izuku threw his legs off the couch.  _ Where- _ “And… stop.” A hand fell on his head. Izuku’s head snapped up and he met the black eyes of his father. “Figured this would happen,” Dad ruffled his hair, “so I came over.”  _ Came ov… er? _ Izuku looked around, vision clearing. He was in the dorm common room. The other teens and pokemon present began to walk again as to act like they  _ weren’t  _ just staring. Izuku let out a shaky breath. Smokey rubbed his nuzzle against Izuku’s cheek. “I’m okay,” he promised. “Maybe so,” Dad cut in, “but you aren’t alright.” Izuku flinched. “Take a second to calm down before breakfast.”

Izuku tired and ultimately failed not to cry. He learned to hate sleeping because of nightmares that constantly plagued him. After a few minutes, Izuku did pull himself together and ate breakfast with his friends. Izuku tried to not let it get to him but all throughout the day he felt a bit sad knowing his friends were starting school tomorrow without him. When the next morning came, despite it being his own summer vacation still, Izuku woke up early just like everyone else to send them off, even if they would just be a few minutes away at the main school building. Dad gave him a hug and a promise to be back at the end of the day before leaving for the school. This month before his own school started was a trial period with Izuku and Chip being without Dad for longer than eight hours. Hero course classes lasted a couple longer for heroics after the other classes got out. 

Izuku rolled out to the front of his house with smokey, Chip, and Pepper. “H- have a good day!” he yelled, waving to his friends as they left. They all turned and waved to him, calling their own ‘See you later’s. It gave them confidence and determination to see their wheelchair-bound friend and past classmate wave to them as they went off to train heroes. Izuku and Chip were the physical representation now in their minds of why they trained to be heroes. To save those similar to them. Who were wronged by the world and had fallen to rock bottom and were in desperate need of a hero. They would be those heroes that saved them.

And just like that, the eighteen remaining students of Class 1-A moved on to Class 2-A and started their second year of high school at UA Trainer’s Academy.

It was rough staying at home alone so long. He would get a text from Dad every hour but those barely did anything. He ‘paced’ by wheeling from each side of the living room, tried to sow but ended up pricking himself more than the fabric, tried to sleep but Dad wasn’t there and Izuku couldn’t hear his heartbeat and HE JUST WASN’T THERE. Izuku ended up just curling in a ball by the door and waiting for him, praying that he would come home safely.  _ Alive. _

It was so hard. Izuku doesn’t know how he ever got through the rest of summer break but he did and before he knew it, the month passed and he woke up on the first day of school for Union Saps High School. His hands were shaking so much as he tried to button up his uniform. Union Saps’ uniform was a white button up with a yellow tie and navy blue blazer and slacks. Girls had navy blue skirts in place of the slacks. Dad, who should have left early as always as a teacher, was leaning against the wall just outside of the bathroom. Izuku fumbled with his piercings. He wouldn’t wear too many he decided but he would definitely wear some.

* **knock knock knock** *

Izuku jumped, dropping a metal spike. Pepper picked it up carefully between two teeth and gave it back to him. He heard the sound of his former classmates. Izuku furrowed his eyebrows and leaned back in his wheelchair to peer out of the bathroom into the hallway. Hitoshi’s head popped in. “Hurry up,” was all he said. “We got something for you.” And then he left just leaving the dumbfounded Izuku, Chip, and Pepper in the bathroom. Dad’s head took his place. “You heard him.” Izuku jolted and went back to his piercings. He ended up with one in his right ear lobe, one in his left earlobe, and two at the top of his left ear. He slid on his round glasses to finish. Izuku picked up and slung his black backpack on his shoulders.

Dad led him out to the front door, the actual front door, of their house. They stopped when met with the entire body of Class 2-A. “Wh- what is this?” Hitoshi walked forward and held out his hand. “We wanted to send you off on your first day of school. The greenette looked down at what Hitoshi was holding. He gasped quietly. It was the same forest green pearl they all had in their right ears. “And,” Ochaco said, “we want to make sure you had one as a sign that no matter what classrooms we sit in we are still classmates.” “And friends,” Ash added. Izuku barely suppressed his tears as he reached forward and took it. He shakily took out the earring in his right ear and replaced it with the pearl. “Th- thank you.” Dad took his other earring. Izuku pet Chip on the head. Then Pepper. Then Smokey. “Y- you two take care of Chip, okay?” “Doom!” “Yena!” 

With all of his friends, no, with his family sending him off, and with a hug from Dad just outside of UA’s gates, Izuku pushed himself up and out of his wheelchair and headed to Union Saps High School on his forearm crutches.

The walk was nerve wracking and painful. He didn’t think about how hard it would be to walk this distance every day with only a few months of physical therapy under his belt but it was too late to turn back now. His phone was buzzing off the charts in his pocket from texts from his friends. The group chat was going wild. Every step further from UA, further from Dad, felt like it was adding another weight on his shoulders. He prayed that this tight feeling in his chest would go away. Izuku approached the front gate of the school. It was rather large with three stories and two different buildings connected through a tunnel but compared to UA it was but an ant in size. Other students, all donning their uniforms, walked through. They were greeting each other, celebrating meeting up again in the same class that school year. Izuku quietly approached, trying to stay in the back of the crowd that had gathered around a board at the front that would tell them what class they would be in. Izuku was still very much shorter than the average male height for his age and the leg imparities were not helping him see over the crowd.

“Aizawa?” He blinked.  _ Dad? _ Izuku looked around, expecting to see his father but instead found a woman standing before him looking down at him.  _ Oh. Right. I am Aizawa. _ A little bit of the tightness in his chest released. It was a great reminder of the difference between his life last year and now. “Y- yes?” he responded. She smiled and held out her hand. “My name is Oikawa Koto. I will be your homeroom teacher. I was sent to come find you.” He blushed. Attempting a small bow, Izuku lowered his head. “Th- thank you, ma’am.” She smiled and gestured for him to follow her.

Mrs. Oikawa walked slower for him which he was grateful for. His homeroom which he would spend the first hour and last hour of the day in was Class 2-C. She asked a few general questions in regards to his time here at Union Spas such as if he would need any assistance getting around and if the changing rooms each class period would be any trouble for him to which he replied that it should be fine. She seemed nice enough. Izuku found that because she came and got him he was actually able to get there not too much later than the other students. He was sat in the third seat of the furthest row from the door. 

It was plainly obvious to see that everyone already knew each other. As they waited for homeroom to start everyone had already gotten in groups and were chatting about their summer breaks. Izuku gripped his pant legs tightly. It was so different from when he started at UA. He knew people there already. He easily made friends. They were all focusing on the same goal to become heroes. They could bond like that. Now he was in a school with no one he knew, all chasing different dreams, and Dad was nowhere close. Izuku bit his tongue, willing himself to not show his distress but he was sure the whole world could hear the pounding of his heart against his ribcage. 

Izuku’s first day was rough. He could barely stand afterwards. Moving from class to class was terrible. He decided on eating his packed lunch in the classroom he would be in after lunch as he was given the option. A few others did as well but again he was left alone. He heard and saw the glances and whispers they sent towards him. He was small, crippled, had piercings and long hair. He was quiet, almost depressed looking but in a creepy way to them. Izuku can’t imagine now how he used to be so confident and bold. Izuku found a new thing to add to the list of things he hates. Well, he supposes it just returned. UA took school off of that list for him but this just returned it. He supposes it wasn’t all bad though. There wasn’t really a class specifically for sewing or design but Nemuri said sometimes in Theatre they will allow you to work on the costumes and stuff if you are good at it some Izuku’s first of two electives he chose that, the other he chose to just be a study hall. Theatre kids were so… welcoming? They were weird and flamboyant, just like Izuku used to be.

He stared up at the large double doors to the auditorium where the Theatre class was held and shows were put on. They were surprisingly heavy.

“Ah! Allow me!” Izuku jumped when a boy with spiky orange hair pulled back with a thin green headband ran up. He had two small bat wings poking out of his shoulder blades with holes in his uniform for them, a long, thin black tail with a pointed end, and on the top of his head he had two black horns. “Here ya go!” He held open the door for Izuku. The greenette bowed. “Th- thanks…” He hobbled his way in. His eyes sparkled at the scene before him. The auditorium was filled with rows upon rows of seats and at the front was a massive stage where students were standing in a circle.

“Bushida!” A woman with short grey hair pointed from the stage at them. “It’s the first day of school! How are you already late?!” The boy, Bushida apparently, scratched the back of his head. He sent a wink Izuku’s way. “I was helping my new friend!”  _ Eh?! I’m your excuse?! _

Izuku couldn’t really refute it either since Bushida did, in fact, help him out with the door. “Well get up here. We are doing introductions, you two.” Bushida doesn’t know Izuku. He was merely a good tardy excuse and yet… he slowed his pace so Izuku wouldn’t have to walk all the way to the stage alone. Why? He didn’t have to. Was it pity? Did the people in this school pity him?

“Alright, lets go over the rules again,” the supposed Theatre teacher said. “You say your name and do an action. The person next to you says your name, does that action, says their name, and does an action. It will keep going around like so. That means,” she smirked, “the last person better have a really good memory.” Everyone groaned. Izuku blinked. She started.

“I am your teacher, Fukudo Konoha.” She spun around and pointed to Bushida as he and Izuku had lined up next to her in the circle. “Fukudo Konoha,” Bushida spun around. He then immediately turned it into a smooth bow. “Bushida Hikaru, at your service!” He pointed to Izuku. The greenette sweatdropped. Everyone was looking at him, expecting something different, new, cool from the new kid. “It is alright if you c-” Konoha-sensei was cut off when Izuku planted his left crutch, jumped slightly off his right one, and spun around the left one. “Fukudo Konoha,” he landed on both feet and bowed, leaning his crutches forward for the full effect, “Bushida Hikaru,” Izuku stood straight and leaned fully on his left crutch. He took hold of the handle on his right and pointed it to the sky and with as much confidence as he could muster he proudly proclaimed his name to be, “Aizawa Izuku.” They all stared.  _ Well, I was training to be a hero just before this. I’d be ashamed if I didn’t have the muscles to do that much.  _ He hid the wince though. That really did put a lot of strain on his legs.

Bushida whistled. “That was pretty cool, Aizawa!” They all grinned. And just like that it went on. Some were having issues with remembering and when they did they had to start all the way back from the start and come up with new actions, switching up who started each time. Izuku was lucky to start once but then not so lucky to have to do ten different actions. He stared up at the high ceiling in exhaustion. Finally, the last person remembered all twenty-three names and actions.  _ That was… kind of fun! _

“Alright, alright,” Fukudo-sensei clapped her hands. “I’ll assign you seats now and tell you how this class is going to go.” They all were assigned seats in the first three rows of the middle section of the audience seating which Izuku would soon find out was called the ‘House’. According to the course syllabus, they would be putting together a one-act play while they learned and did other skits and at the end of the semester would perform it. They did this twice a year so they would do another. Other than that they would be studying what goes on behind the scenes of theatre, acting skills, and the basics of being an actor or actress. The best part was-

“And for when we are acting or rehearsing our play we might have a few pokemon parts so you will be able to have your pokemon out at certain times,” Fukudo-sensei announced. Izuku beamed. Inwardly, that is. He kept his face stale.  _ I’ll have to start bringing Chip!  _ Theatre was the last class of the day, for him at least, but many students stayed in the computer lab or library to study. And they also returned to homeroom for an hour after school but after that, they were set free. The hours spent in hero classes at UA would be study time for regular students here, even if it wasn’t mandatory. Izuku though couldn’t. He felt like he was dying. His legs hurt like hell and he was two breaths from a panic attack. He weaved his way out of class when the bell rang and immediately made a b-line for UA.

____________________________

Bushida Hikaru walked down the halls of the second year hall. He poked his head in each one. He got hellos from those still studying there instead of the library or computer lab. Now, Hikaru didn’t like to boast or anything but he’d say he is pretty popular here at Union Saps High School. “Bushida!” Kaneko ran up, leaving her book when he popped his head into Class 2-C. “What are you here for? You usually go to the computer lab!” Kaneko is a girl with long blonde hair pulled up into a ponytail. She is one of his fangirls, basically, but more of the tolerable ones. “Heya,” he winked. “I was looking for someone. Do you know what class that kid with the crutches is in?” Truthfully, Hikaru forgot the boy’s name. Kaneko grimaced. “He’s in this class.” Hikaru’s teal eyes looked her up and down. They glow a bit naturally. “You don’t like him?”

“Bleh,” she fake gags. It reminds Hikaru why he hates fangirls and groupies. If any boy isn’t like their ‘biase’ or any girl gets too close to them they immediately turn on them. “He’s just so  _ weird _ . Have you seen all of those piercings? And his hair? He looks like some thuggy if it weren’t for those crutches. I bet he’s faking it, you know? Does he even matter? No one could ever be as great as you!” Hikaru chuckles dryly but his sarcastic tone passes right over her head. “Anyway, Bushida, why are you looking for him?”

Hikaru shrugged. “Just thought I’d say hello. I’ll check the library and computer lab. Thanks, Kaneko.” He waves and leaves. Kaneko pokes her head out of the class. “Anytime, Bushida! You know you can always come to me or call me or text or anything!” He sweatdropped. Hikaru looked over his shoulder, gave a peace sign, and wink. The girl absolutely  _ swooned _ .

Hikaru was just on his way to the library when he caught sight of the green-haired boy leaving the school gates slowly through the windows.  _ That’s odd. Usually most students stay for self-study.  _ Hikaru shrugged and kept on towards the computer lab. He doesn’t know why but the boy looked strangely familiar for some reason. Hikaru waved to those waving in the computer lab. He took his seat at the far computer, making sure his tail kept wrapped around the chair leg so it wouldn’t get in the way of anyone else.

\-----

_I’m going to be late!_ _Hikaru ran through the halls towards the auditorium. He has been in Theatre since his middle school years and absolutely loves it even if they say popular kids shouldn’t._

_ The orange-haired boy came to a halt when he saw a boy with green hair and crutches trying to open the door and stay upright. He sighs. They really do need to get lighter doors. _

_ ‘Ah!’ he runs up. ‘Allow me!’ _

\-----

Hikaru had to admit. He had a similar impression on the boy as Kaneko did. That he was depressing and tried too hard to look like a thug or something. However, that was changed soon. What Hikaru loved about the theatre program is that it is so welcoming. When acting you can do stupid stuff and everyone laughs  _ with _ you and not  _ at _ you. It is like a small family for all types of people. When the crutched boy pulled that stunt with the spin and bow he really wowed the class. Gradually he began to get a little bit more confident with the strange moves.

It was just a hunch but Hikaru feels they were both searching for similar things joining the theatre program. When Hikaru did in his second year of middle school he was getting sick of people telling him how good looking he is, how he should be doing sports, how girls and guys alike fawned over him as callous as it sounds. He just wanted to do something different and be himself, not this act to appease everyone’s high expectations of him. Hikaru found a place on stage with everyone in the theatre crowd. Maybe, just maybe, this new student is like him.

He shrugged and put on some headphones, angling them between the horns that always seemed to get in the way.  _ I’ll see him tomorrow. _

____________________________

He knows that he won’t see Dad when he arrives. He knows Dad is still teaching the extra classes. He knows this but it still hurts when he arrives at home and no one is there. “Vee!” “Doom!” “Yena!” Izuku collapses to the floor as soon as the door closes behind him. He grips his hair.  _ Dad… _ Izuku whimpers. His chest hurts. Being so far away from Dad hurts. Theatre was fun and all but that was the only good-ish part of his day. He could feel everyone’s glares and whispers. He felt like he was being watched all over again.

Smokey helped him up into his wheelchair. He rolled into Dad’s room and practically through himself onto the bed. Tars leaked from his eyes.  _ Dad… Please come home!  _ Izuku eventually fell asleep curled up in a ball on Dad’s bed. When he woke up, Dad was there, leaning on the backrest of the bed and running his hands through Izuku’s hair as he read a book. The greenette let out a wet sigh and pressed himself closer to the man.

_ School is… hard.  _

Between school, having to walk all day, therapy, and physical therapy Izuku thought that he might just die. All of his friends wanted to know about how school was going for him. About his friends and classes. He couldn’t tell them anything though. A week in and Izuku had no friends. He sat with no one at lunch and didn’t stay after to study. He messed around a bit in Theatre and that was the highlight of his day. He couldn’t just tell them that he felt like crying for a solid ten hours and then another two at therapy. So he just sat there and did his homework in the commons with them when they invited him over. They eventually stopped asking. They knew better than to press for much more.

Friday rolled around and Izuku was so pleased with the soon-to-be weekend. They had something in Theatre called “Improv Fridays” where they just did improv all hour, small little funny skits or games without any script. Just kids being kids goofing around. Izuku didn’t really do much other than a few games that didn’t require too much moving around but it was nice watching them all have fun. When something particularly funny happens Bushida would randomly look over at him and wink with his tongue out all silly-like. The little devilish theme child seemed really popular. He’s in Class 2-E Izuku thinks. They have a couple of other classes together such as Pre-Calculus and Home Skills which was basically learning how to live on your own. That is usually a class that your homeroom takes together but it is a joint class with another class so Class 2-C and Class 2-E got paired together for the year. The bell  _ finally _ rang, letting him out of homeroom and out of school for the day.

Izuku was just about out of the school gates when he heard someone calling his name. “Aizawa!” He looked over his shoulder. A few boys that he had seen around Bushida a lot waved him over. Izuku looked back at the gate and then to them. He sighed and hobbled over. “Yes?” There were three: a tall, bald-headed boy, a shorted one with glasses, and another with his hair half shaved. “We’ve been wanting to talk with you,” baldy said. “You know, since Bushida’s got some weird obsession with you and all.” Izuku blinked. He suddenly got a really bad feeling about this but they had already surrounded him and led him to behind the school building.

“What do you need?” he asked, trying to keep his cool. He remembers he has Chip on his belt buckle in his pokeball. He had brought him now knowing that about once a week they use their pokemon in Theatre. A heavy hand landed on his shoulder. Izuku found himself shoved up harshly against the wall. His heart pounded in his chest.  _ This isn’t good. I’ve heard about this. This is what they tried to do back in Vaniville. I can’t fight well right now! _ “Lookie here, newbie, I don’t know what it is that Bushida sees in you but you’re ruining his cred.” Izuku bit his tongue. “I don’t know what you are talking about. I hardly know him.” “You think you’re hot stuff talking back?”

\-----

_ ‘Who told you to talk back? Wouldn’t want Inha following that example would you? I guess I should just beat it out of ya!’ _

\-----

Izuku felt his arm twitch. Blood roared in his ears. He snapped his jaw shut. “You know what I heard?” the glasses kid stepped up. “I heard you’re elementless. I heard you were kicked out of UA because of it too.” Izuku grit his teeth.  _ Shut up… That’s not true. _ The three laughed. “You better stay out of Bushida’s way. He’s on the track to the high road. He doesn’t need some elementless cripple dragging him down, okay?”  _ I knew it. Bushida too.  _ Izuku had just started to see the boy as someone who might become a friend. He was the only one who really talked to Izuku after all. Now he knew the truth. His little lackeys ganging up on Izuku like this, it made him sick to his stomach.  _ The world really is just full of liars, huh? _ “But to make sure you don’t, how about we give you a little lesson, Zawy?”

He bit his tongue so hard it drew blood. Shaved-head laughed. “That makes him sound like a baby!” “Good,” baldy roared. “He’ll be balling like one in a second.”  _ They’re going to beat me. _ Anger flared in Izuku’s chest. “How about this, Zawy,”  _ Don’t call me that, _ “We’ll let you go if you pay up. Let’s say a solid $20 as a monthly fee?”  _ Soliciting me? _

\-----

_ ‘I am going to make such a profit off of you. I need to see just how good you are in bed.’ _

\-----

He couldn’t breathe. He felt like he might cry but more than anything he wanted nothing more than to sock these bullies in the face just like he wished he had done to Mr. Midoriya. “Well? Pay up,” baldy pressed. Izuku glared up at him. “No,” he hissed. The malice in his voice seemed to shake the boys up a bit. Glasses chuckled warily. “Come on, don’t play hard. Just $20-” “ _ Did I stutter? _ ” Izuku asked. “I said ‘No.’” Their faces changed to annoyed. “No? Who do you think you are?” baldy growled. “Fine, we’ll just take it by force. Hold him down.”

Izuku’s eyelids droop. _I hate it… I hate it…_ _Why is it always me…?_ Glasses and Shaved-head reached for his arms. _I hate it!_

Izuku was done being the victim and so he did something about it.

____________________________

“Seriously?! Again?!” Hikaru threw his hands up. Aizawa wasn’t in class again after school. Furthermore he couldn’t find Kudo, Hada, or Ohara, his three best friends. They usually all go to study together after school and then hang out at one of their houses. Hikaru slouched, downtrodden as he walked to the computer lab again after another fruitless search for Aizawa. He had missed him every day this week! Even on Wednesday. Hikaru meant to rush out to find him before he left but Hunano-sensei needed help moving some boxes and, well, he couldn’t just not help him. Hikaru sighed. He glanced out of the window and stopped.

“What are those three doing?” Outside were Kudo, Hada, and Ohara. Kudo waved over…  _ Aizawa! Perfect! _ Hikaru turned and rushed for the stairs. The second years were on the second floor, of course. Well, the right wing of it. The left wing had elective courses. Hikaru ran out deciding on what to say. He didn’t want to come off as weird. What could he say?  _ ‘Hey you! Be my friend!’  _ Nah, he doesn’t think Aizawa is that kinda guy who just accepts that sort of invitation Seems sketchy.

‘I said ‘No.’” Aizawa’s voice was laced with such malice and anger that it stopped Hikaru in his tracks before he could turn the corner. “No? Who do you think you are?” That was Kudo. “Fine, we’ll just take it by force. Hold him down.” Hikaru’s eyes widened. He moved to step in when he heard a loud- * **BAM** *. The orange-haired boy jumped, tail going stiff. His wings tensed.  _ I have to stop this! _ Hikaru ran out. “Sto- Huh?”

Aizawa was on top of Kudo, one of his crutches pressed to the much larger boy’s neck who was pinned to the ground. Ohara and Hada stepped back in shock.  _ What happened?!  _ “I- Idiots!” Kudo yelled. “Get him off- * **cough** *!” Aizawa pressed harder. “ _ Shut up. _ ” A shiver went down Hikaru’s spine.

_ This kid… He might really be a thug! _

\-----

_ ‘Fine, we’ll just take it by force. Hold him down.’ _

\-----

_ Wait… Didn’t Kudo initiate this? But…. they aren’t like that! _ Hada, his tough, half-shaved headed friend ran up preparing to tackle Aizawa. Aizawa rolled over and off of Kudo. He held up his crutch and rammed it right into Hada’s gut. The teen coughed, bile spewing from his mouth as he fell to the ground. Kudo got up, reaching for Aizawa’s head. Ohara ran up for a sneak attack behind the greenette. Aizawa grabbed Kudo’s outstretched arm and pulled him faster and closer than Ohara thought he would arrive at the boy, making the two attackers collide head first. _ He’s… really good at this!  _ Hikaru shook his head.  _ This is no time to be amazed! _ Hikaru ran up and grabbed Ohara and Kudo by the collars. He yanked them back. “Stop it!”

All four looked up. Well, Hada was still peeled over on his side clutching his stomach but he at least glanced over in Hikaru’s direction. “B- Bushida!” Ohara gasped. Aizawa sat up and oh if looks could kill Hikaru would be rolling in his grave right now. “Wouldn’t  _ you _ like to know,” Aizawa growled. “You set this whole thing up.” 

Hikaru took a step back. “What are you talking about?! I haven’t done anything!” “Right! Kudo stood up and brushed himself off. “This kid just pulled us back here and started this fight for no reason.” Aizawa growled. “ _ Are you serious? _ You try to threaten me to stay away from Bushida and then beat me when I refuse to pay you to do so?  _ I started this? _ ”

Hikaru blanched. “You guys wouldn’t really do that!” Hada finally got up from his heaving position. “R- right. We wouldn’t! Did you see how he hit me?! He’s violet. We should report him to the principal!” Hikaru looked down at the boy still on the ground.  _ Aizawa did this? _ He looked over at one of the discarded crutches multiple feet away and at the one still in Aizawa’s hand.  _ No, not without good reason. He may have been able to hold his own for a bit but he is still wounded. He can barely walk.  _ Hikaru’s chest felt tight. He stormed past his friends to the discarded crutch and picked it up. “Kudo, Hada, Ohara, I want you to tell me the truth right the hell now.” Hikaru stood and faced them. “I saw you from the school pull Aizawa behind the school and I heard Kudo tell you two to hold Aizawa down. Now,” he strolls over to them and presses the end of the crutch to Kudo’s chest, “tell me the truth and we may still be friends after this.”

They did confess and Hikaru was so bewildered and stunned. “When did I ever ask you to defend my honor or anything? And like this?” he gestured to the greenette still on the ground with a shocked face. “By beating up the new kid who is literally barely even walking with crutches?!” “He’s got to be faking it!” Ohara suddenly burst out. “You saw how he fought us! No cripple-”

“ _ Shut up _ ,” Aizawa hissed. “Don’t freaking call me that. And for your information, your info on my was half right. I am elementless and I did attend UA. I wasn’t kicked out about that but,” he cracked his knuckles threateningly, “I got the hero training enough to be able to take down a few low lifes without needing my legs.”  _ UA…? UA-  _ “THAT’S WHY YOU LOOK FAMILIAR!” Hikaru pointed at Aizawa. “You were that evolving kid from the Sports Festival last year!” he exclaimed. Aizawa deadpanned. “No dip, Sherlock.”

Kudo, Hada, and Ohara paled. “No way!!!” Hikaru looked back at his friends.  _ Got off track. Oops. _ “Still, that doesn’t give you any right to attack him like this especially since you didn’t know he could fight like that. I think you all owe Aizawa an apology.” “Save it,” Aizawa hoisted himself up on one crutch. “I don’t need no fake sorries because your friends are cowards. Can I have my crutch back, please?” Hikaru gasped, realizing he still had Aizawa’s crutch. “Sorry! Here!” He fumbled a bit before passing it to the smaller teen. Aizawa huffed. “Why are  _ you _ apologizing? You’re a funny guy, Bushida.”

Hikaru chuckled. He turned back to Kudo, Hada, and Ohara. “You three, I’ll text you later. Come on, Aizawa. At least let me make up for it with a drink or something.” Hikaru was conflicted. He never thought his friends were like that.  _ Is this why no one gets too close to me? How long have they been attacking people like this? _

He heard a relieved sigh from Aizawa who slowly walked behind him. “Thanks for that, Bushida,” Aizawa said. Hikaru shook his head. “No! No! I’m truly, really sorry! That shouldn’t have happened!” Aizawa shrugged. “Anyway, I’ll get going now. See you at school, I guess.”

Hikaru frowned. “I meant it when I said I’d treat you, Aizawa. Come on, I’d feel bad. Plus, I wanna know more about you!” Aizawa narrowed his eyes. “That’s creepy. Either way, I’m about to peel over. I can’t walk much longer today. I’d have to go home and get my wheelchair at this rate.” Hikaru nodded. “Then that is just what we will do! Lead the way, Aizawa!” The greenette seemed a bit contemplative but nonetheless nodded and jerked his head. Hikaru’s extroverted personality wins out again! There is a reason he is popular aside from his good looks after all. A bit contradictory to his demon-esqu features, he is known to be an ‘angel’ around school. Hikaru follows Aizawa for a bit before he realizes they are getting suspiciously close to UA High School.

“H- hey, man, I know you’re angry and all about it but is turning me into  _ UA _ of all places really worth it?” Hikaru scratches the back of his head as he waits outside of the massive UA gates. Aizawa furrows his eyebrows and looks up from his phone. “What do you mean? I live here.” Hikaru blinks. “NO WAY!!!” The greenette flinches. “You’re loud.” His phone beeps. “Alright, Nedzu made it so you can come in without the alarms triggering. Come on.”

“NowaynowaynowaynowayNOWAY!” Hikaru’s eyes are moving so fast he can hardly see the scenery around him. “I’m actually on UA’s campus!” Aizawa rolls his eyes. “My father is a teacher here,” Aizawa explained, “and with the dorm system we had to move on campus. Of course, at that time I was still a student here.”

That brought Hikaru back to attention as they walked up the path to the dormatories that read ‘2-A.’  _ 2-A…? That means they were once 1-A which means… Aizawa was part of the Bad Luck Class… His demeanor makes a lot more sense now.  _ The ‘Bad Luck Class’ of UA was infamous for the attacks on them. There was a lot of anger towards them in Lumiose City before but Hikaru just felt bad for them. It must suck having to endure all of those attacks. “Why aren’t you at UA anymore?” he asked. They delved off to the house to the side of the dorm. “I was injured,” Aizawa replies simply. “I can’t physically be a hero anymore.” And then a quiet- “Or mentally…”

The door opened. “Pepper, Smokey, I’m home.” Aizawa announces. Hikaru jumps when a giant Houndoom with a small Poochyena on it’s back comes out from somewhere in the house. Aizawa lets out a three-legged Eevee from the pokeball on his belt. “Vee!”  _ It’s the Eevee from the festival! _ “Everyone, this is Bushida,” Aizawa gestures to him. “These are my pokemon: Chip the Eevee, Smokey the Houndoom, and Pepper the Poochyena.”

“A- a- AH! N- Nice to meet you!” Hikaru bows deeply.  _ Three! He has three! Heroes and hero students really are a different breed! _ “Houndoom.” Smokey pushes over a wheelchair which Aizawa slumps into. “Dang, I thought my legs would dissolve all over again.” “Dissolve?” Hikaru couldn’t stop the word from coming out of his mouth. Aizawa hums, not really elaborating. “I am going to go drop off my bag. Give me a second.”

While Aizawa is off in the house, Hikaru feels a bit out of place. The Eevee, Chip, glares at him from the hallway. Hikaru suddenly feels bad about being so fascinated about being in UA and Aizawa being a former UA student. He can tell that the air in this house is tense when others are around. The whole UA campus is so tightly secured. It truly was a place that had its safety stripped from it and they all feel it. He looks around having nothing else to do. His eyes land on a paper framed and hung in the dining room. He didn’t want to have to take off his shoes to get a closer look so he just squinted.

“Adoption Form…?”  _ Aizawa is adopted? Hey, hey, hey this is, like, really recent! Not even half a year ago! _ He straightened up at the sound of the wheelchair coming. He met Aizawa’s eyes and returned to his chipper self. Still, he couldn’t help but feel a bit distraught.  _ What happened to Aizawa and his classmates to make him like this? _

Suddenly, being a hero isn’t all Hikaru thinks that it is cracked up to be.

Chip jumps up on Aizawa’s lap and off they went to get drinks just as promised. Hikaru had to wonder what he just got himself into meeting Aizawa Izuku.

____________________________

Shouta sends a text letting Iuzku know it is him coming in but he knows Izuku is probably asleep in Shouta’s bed waiting for him like he has been everyday this week so he probably won’t get it. Shouta feels so bad about not being there when Izuku gets home. He knows it is so hard on the boy. He just got off of having to have Shouta around 24/7. Going to school was a big step up.

Shouta opens the door to the sound of the television. “Izuku, I’m home.” He closes the door, takes off his shoes, and enters the house. His feet stop short when he sees two heads instead of one in the living room. An orange haired boy with slightly glowing teal eyes, black horns, wings, and a black tail looks up at him. “Ah! Hello!” He puts down the game remote and stands up, bowing deeply. “I’m Bushida Hikaru, your son’s friend from school.” Shouta stares blankly at this kid in front of him.  _ Izuku brought home a friend. IZUKU brought home a friend.  _ He startles, realizing he had been staring. He gives a small bow. “Nice to meet you. I’m Aizawa Shouta. Izuku, you didn’t tell me you had a friend over.” he turned to put down his satchel. Izuku paled a bit. “It’s fine, of course,” Shouta said. “Just surprising. I wish I could say you can stay, Bushida, but Izuku has to get to physical therapy so-”

“That’s fine!” He bowed again. “Thank you for having me over!” He waved to Izuku. “See you at school, Aizawa!” Shouta was taken back a bit hearing Izuku called by his last name. Not that he disliked it. Today was just full of surprises he thinks and that isn’t a bad thing. Izuku nods. “Thanks for the drinks. See you at school.”

Shouta is sure Nedzu is watching Bushida leave so he isn’t worried about the boy wandering on UA’s campus.

The door closes and Shouta immediately turns to Izuku. He crosses the distance with long strides. Izuku holds up his hands. Chip growls, getting up. “I- I’m sorry! I-” Shouta falls to his knees and takes his son in his arms. Izuku freezes. He goes silent. Shouta holds him tightly. “Don’t apologize,” he whispers. “I’m just so, so proud of you.” He hears Izuku sniffle before returning the hug. “Sunday you don’t have school or any form of therapy,” Shouta sits back up. “Why don’t you invite Bushida over then? I would love to get to know my son’s first friend at his new school.

____________________________

_ I’m back… Oh my gosh I’m back! _

Hikaru was so bewildered. He didn’t actually expect Aizawa to text him when he gave the boy his phone number but now he was standing in front of UA’s gate again. “Hey,” he looked up at Aizawa as the boy, in his wheelchair, came to greet him. “You’re good to enter.” Nothing scares Hikaru more than the UA gate system that will practically cut off the head of a trespasser. He bolts across it but nothing happens.

“Heya, Aizawa!” he greets. “Why the sudden invite? “Aizawa shrugs. “My friends don’t believe I actually made a friend. Sorry, showing you off like you did me on the first day.” Hikaru blanches. He remembers using Aizawa as an excuse.  _ I did do that, didn’t I? _ To his surprise, they didn’t go to Aizawa’s house and instead went right into the dorm. It was massive with a giant living room area, dining area, and kitchen. Perfect for twenty students to share.

A girl with pink skin, pink hair, and yellow horns poked her head in. “Izuku’s back!” she yelled. Hikaru jumped at the sudden echo of a million opening and slamming doors. “Sorry in advance,” Aizawa sighed. The pink haired girl strolled over. “Hiya! I’m Ashido Mina!” Hikaru bowed. “Hi! I’m-”

“A FRIEND! IT WAS TRUE!” Hikaru jumped. A yellowed haired boy came running in. Soon enough Hikaru began recognizing faces from the Sports Festival. Not only them but a whole bunch of pokemon.  _ It’s really them. Oh my gosh! _ Names were being tossed around faster than he could remember them. “Wow, the flunkie stayed long enough to make a friend.” A purple haired boy joked. Aizawa rolled his eyes.

“Ah ha ha… I’m Bushida Hikaru, Aizawa’s friend,” he introduced himself. An ash blonde with sharp red eyes deadpanned. “That’s hella weird hearing. You sound like our teacher’s buddy or something.” “That’s not very nice,” Mr. Aizawa came in from a hallway. “Better watch your mouth. I do still control your grades.”

Hikaru expected them to be so dark and stoic like Aizawa but aside from… Todoroki was it? And Shinsou? The kids were rather normal. Now he sees why Aizawa reacted so normally to his upbeat personality. He played games with them and at lunch and for the most part Hikaru thought it was just a normal group of students. If he didn’t know it was  _ that _ class then maybe he wouldn’t have thought anything about it when certain things happened.

Kaminari dropped a cup in the kitchen and everyone was up rom their seated positions in the blink of an eye.

Tokoyami tapped Tanaka on the shoulder when he wouldn’t listen and on sheer reflex Tanaka flipped him over his shoulder.

None of the games they played were allowed to have anything with fire or anything with frogs in it and if he asked why he got some half-hearted answer or even just a hum.

Every time something like that happened he’d watch them all take a deep breath to calm down. Hikaru felt himself getting paranoid just watching them!  _ Dang, man, if this is what it means to be a hero then that sucks! _ Eventually he did leave. Aizawa followed him out to the gates. “Thanks for coming,” he said. Hikaru habitually wanted to pat him on the shoulder, sling his arm around him, or something like that but after witnessing that class he ultimately decided against it. Instead he laughed it off. “Thanks for having me! It was a lot of fun. Maybe next time you’ll come over to my house?” Aizawa looked him up and down. Again, it is just the small things. He noticed it with Aizawa’s friends too. Each time a new person came in and saw him for the first time they would survey him or something. It was like they were making sure he was safe or not, a villain or a normal person or something! “Sure,” Aizawa finally replied. Hikaru beamed. “Great! See you at school, Aizawa!” He ran off.

Nearing his house, he slowed down and looked at the sky as he walked. “Heroes are pretty cool, huh?” he mused to himself. “I feel like I’ve taken them for granted…” With a sharp nod he entered his house. “Ma! Pa! I’m home!” “Welcome home, Hikaru!” “Hikaru!” his little brother came running up. The orange-haired boy knelt down and caught the running demon child. He looked around his happy home.

_ Alright! Aizawa is doing his best to fit in at school so I guess I will just have to help him. _ He sent his brother off to play and took out his phone.  _ First things first: dealing with Kudo, Hada, and Ohara. _

____________________________

High school life isn’t so bad after all, Izuku thinks. Sure, it sucks being away from Dad so long and he has a panic attack every time he gets home but it is getting easier as the months tick by. Bushida introduced him to a few more of his friends. Kudo, Hada, and Ohara, as he learned were the names of his almost bullies, didn’t approach him anymore. They still hung out with Bushida but not when Izuku was around. In the Theatre program, while acting and just doing stupid stuff, he got to know his classmates a lot better and could even call them friends. Bushida, Nagata, Sone, and Machida came over during lunch to eat with him in his class. Nagata was a first year boy with ginger hair usually in a braid. Sone was a second year girl with multi-colored tentacles for hair. Machida was a third year boy who looked more like a chameleon than a human. They were all from his Theatre class. Izuku thinks that Bushida has started to act more… real? If that makes sense. He started out acting like a big shot in the school and to be fair he was and still is but after he started hanging out around Izuku and those dragging on his tailcoat started dropping off of him because of it, Bushida began looking more at ease. He laughed more with the Theatre crowd than anyone else.

The four often came to UA to hang out or sometimes all five of them would meet up in the city or at one of their houses. One day nearing the end of their first semester Izuku had spent his first night without Dad since the Lumiose City attack when he attended a sleepover at Bushida’s house. He had a nightmare, much like per usual, but none of them really minded. They didn’t know how to calm him down but they didn’t press him either. They let him sit in the bathroom and call Dad for a bit to calm down and the night/day continued as usual for sleepovers. The next time was a week away from Dad when he took Class 2-A to the training camp again that year but Nemuri stayed with him during that time. Izuku had truly begun seeing her like a mother.

When it came time for the play, the audience was alight. Whispers were going around. Finally, Nanase peaked out from behind the curtain to take a look. He immediately turned around as everyone was getting in costume, on the boy’s side at least. “Guys!” he hissed quietly. “Heroes are here! And the students from the UA Sports Festival!” If they weren’t trying to be quiet then they would have exploded. Heads were popping out. Izuku, Bushida, Nagata, and Machida smirked.  _ Of course _ they would come. Izuku ended up helping with costumes a lot but by the end of the semester he was able to walk on a single cane for a bit so they gave him an old man role in the play so that he could be in it too. He had a pretty convincing old person walk. On stage and saying his lines he could just make out his UA friends in the back of the audience. Yamada, Nemuri, and Dad came all purposefully donning their hero costumes. Izuku almost laughed on stage and broke character because of it but he didn’t luckily.

The play was a huge success and was so much fun. Funny, Izuku never thought he’d actually enjoy going to another school.

Izuku was able to take off earlier in the semester to watch the Sports Festival in person from the commentators booth where Dad and Yamada were doing the announcements again. He feels a bit bad for the other courses. Class 2-A blew them out of the park. Class 2-B did really well though too! In the end Katsuki won. That was one win for Shoto and one for Katsuki. He ate with them all afterward and they vowed to settle the score in their third year. The others laughed, taking false sides but also vowing not to back down. Who knows? Maybe one of them will take the spot instead? After all, Ochaco was doing really well. Izuku wouldn’t be surprised if she snagged a win from under their belts if they let their guards down.

Christmas Break rolled around and Izuku experienced his first Christmas outside of the Midoriya household. (See Christmas Special Chapter.) Dad and Nemuri got engaged! Nemuri was going to become his actual mother! He was going to have a mom! Before he knew it, he was thrown into his second semester. Union Saps put together a musical that the whole school could participate in so long as they actually auditioned and got a part. Izuku… can’t sing. But he was able to do a lot more work on costumes for it! His UA friends came to see it of course too. In the blink of an eye, Izuku’s second year of high school came to a close. They had to send off Machida who would be going off to college to study Katonian. He always did want to live in Kanto. He and Ash got along well.

A month into Summer Break a celebration occurred.

____________________________

“Daaaaad! Stay still!” Shouta blushed as his son chastised him for the umpteenth time. He forced himself to sit up tall and straight and  _ still _ . “Sorry, sorry.” The greenette rolled his eyes and continued waxing Shouta’s hair back.

Today was the day.  _ Today _ was  _ the day. _ He and Nemuri were about to be wed. She would be his wife. HIS WIFE! Shouta isn’t one to get super excited, or at least not show it, but he might just cry today. “There you go,” Izuku patted his shoulder. Shouta used a hand held mirror to look at himself. His hair was smoothed down with a small ponytail in the back, half of hair held up by it. For this though, Izuku had braided the ponytail. “Thanks, Izuku.” The boy grinned. Oh, to see him smile. Despite all that had happened, Izuku, too, was very excited for today. Chip as well. Shouta didn’t expect for them to get so close to Nemuri but it was plainly obvious to see that they already thought of her as a mother.

Shouta stood. “Ope,” Hizashi, his Best Man, stepped forward and fixed Shouta’s tie. “There ya go!”

* **knock knock knock** *

All heads turned to the door of the room the men were dressing in. “All clear?” Mom’s voice came from the other side. Shouta crossed the room and opened it. She smiled and poked her head in. “Sorry, gentlemen, I’m taking this one.” Without a word of warning Mom grabbed his hand and dragged him out of the room. He was led to the lobby of the botanical garden the wedding was taking place in. Mom sat him down. She smiled at him. “Shouta, I just wanted to tell you how proud of you I am.” He blushed. “I know, I know, you aren’t a child anymore but I am still your mother and you will still always be my little boy. I’ve seen… a lot happen.” She smiled sadly. “You’ve been through a lot and you’ve grown a lot. I wish I could have done more to help you smile but I guess someone else has taken that spot.” She gave his hand a squeeze. “You’re starting a family today, Shouta. Izuku and Chip have always been your sons, of course, but now you are completing it. Treat Nemuri well, alright? She’s given you her heart so you better hold it and in turn she will hold yours.”

Shouta nodded. “I will,” he promised.  _ Dang it! Don’t make me cry already! _ Mom reached up and pulled him down a bit, planting a gentle kiss on his forehead. “Don’t forget,” she whispered. “Through thick and through thin I am your mother and I love you very much too.” Shouta hugged her tightly. “I love you, Mom.”

The wedding started. All of Class 2-A were in attendance, his family, Nemuri’s family, and many of the teacher’s at UA. Even Serena had come down with her family to attend. Doctor Suzuki from when Izuku was hospital-bound had made it too. Hizashi was his best man, one of Nemuri’s friends from her high school days as she was a couple of years older than Shouta, was her maid of honor. Cementoss, Vlad King, and Hound Dog were his other groomsmen. Shouta was already struggling to keep it together as they walked down the isles to where he stood in the ring of flowers in the garden. Behind them walked Umbreon with Liepard, Seviper with Butterfree, and Chip hobbled alongside Absol. And then it was announced for everyone to stand. They had a specific place in this garden for weddings and events so there could be an audience. At the end of the isles, the glass double doors opened revealing Izuku in a tuxedo. He held his cane in one hand and a small basic in the other he held the hand of Eri, the little girl saved from Overhaul. She wore a pink dress. Oooooh boy Izuku looked like he was about to break down just like Shouta. He could barely keep the pillow strapped to the hand holding his cane up straight. It had the rings on it. Izuku walked Eri down the isles as she scattered pink rose petals and behind her…

Tears pricked Shouta’s eyes.  _ She’s so beautiful! _ Nemuri walked with her father down the isles. Her dress was long and flowing, covered in lace and glitter that caught the light just right to make it look as though she were glowing. The veil draped over her face his her from view just a bit but one could still make out her face. Shouta couldn’t help it. He pressed his fingers to his eyes.  _ Keep it together! Your freaking students are here! _ Hizashi, standing beside him, pat his back. Shouta took a deep breath and looked up. Mr. Kayama lifted his daughter’s veil and kissed her on the forehead before sending her off the final step to stand with Shouta before the minister.  “You look beautiful,” Shouta whispered. She smiled. “Thanks.” Tears were in her eyes too. He could barely focus on the words of the minister. He almost missed it when it came time for the vows.”

“Repeat after me: I, Aizawa Shouta…”

“I, Aizawa Shouta…”

“... take thee, Kayama Nemuri…”

“... take thee, Kayama Nemuri…”

“... to be my wife.”

“... to be my wife.”

“To have and to hold from this day forward…”

“To have and to hold from this day forward…”

“... for better, for worse…”

“... for better, for worse…”

“... for richer, for poorer…”

“... for richer, for poorer…”

“... in sickness and in health…”

“... in sickness and in health…”

“... to love and to cherish, till death do us part.”

“... to love and to cherish, till death do us part.” 

_ Oh my goodness I didn’t mess up!  _ Shouta bit his tongue. “Ms. Kayama, please repeat after me,” the minister turned to her. Nemuri stared into Shouta’s eyes as she repeated the words.

“I, Kayama Nemuri…”

“I, Kayama Nemuri…”

“... take thee, Aizawa Shouta…”

“... take thee, Aizawa Shouta…”

“... to be my husband.”

“... to be my husband.”

“To have and to hold from this day forward…”

“To have and to hold from this day forward…”

“... for better, for worse…”

“... for better, for worse…”

“... for richer, for poorer…”

“... for richer, for poorer…”

“... in sickness and in health…”

“... in sickness and in health…”

“... to love and to cherish, till death do us part.”

“... to love and to cherish, till death do us part.”

They were both crying silently but they were happy tears. “The rings, please?” Izuku stepped forward and held out the pillow. Shouta smiled at the tears in the corner of his son’s eyes. He picked up Nemuri’s ring and she picked up his. Izuku stepped back into line. “Nemuri,” Shouta whispered as he slid the gold band onto her finger, “with this ring I seal a promise to you to never let you down and to love you forever, even in death.” She slid the gold band onto his finger. “And I the same,” she whispered. “Even if the villains attack again or the world falls down around us, it is you, me,” she winks at Izuku and Chip, “and our sons against the world.” 

“With the power invested in me,” the minister finally says, “I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride.” Without another word, Shouta took Nemuri into his arms and gave her a long, love-filled kiss. They both rolled their eyes when Hizashi catcall whistled.

The reception was fun too, even if Shouta isn’t particularly one for parties. He and Nemuri had their first dance. They cut the cake and ate a great meal. Hizashi gave his best man speech and Shouta swears he did everything in his power to embarrass the heck out of the poor newly wed man but Shouta supposes he expected that. Hizashi is his best friend. He wouldn’t have had it any other way. Shouta and Mom ended up sharing a dance together too. They didn’t share many words. Their eyes said it all.

_ I am so, so proud of you, Shouta. _

____________________________

“I hope you don’t mind me moving in with you guys,” Nemuri said, looking down at Izuku. It was a bit awkward with the height difference and her having to hold him up mostly since he didn’t have his cane, but the two spun happily around on the dance floor.

He shook his head. “Not at all. Just so long as you don’t mind me calling you ‘Mom’.” He felt his cheeks heat up just saying it. Nemuri smiled happily. “Someone’s got a backbone again.” “One that can’t keep me up straight,” he huffed. She laughed. “I don’t mind you calling me ‘Mom’ at all if I can call you my ‘Son’.”

Izuku’s chest tightened. He lowered his head to hide his tears. “Th- that- I- I’m fine with that.” “Not okay?” He chuckled wetly. “It’s a g- good okay.” He looks up at her with a big smile. “You are a r- really good okay.”

Only a handful of the people in attendance at the wedding truly would ever understand the depth of that sentence.

Shouta took his sons aside at some point and knelt down by them. He ruffled Izuku’s hair and Chip’s fur. “Hey, you two.” “Vee.” “Hey, Dad.” Shouta took them into his arms. “Just… thank you. Thanks for, you know, accepting her.” Izuku hugged him back. “I’m just glad you are happy.”

“I want you to be happy too,” Shouta pressed. The greenette and Eevee grinned. “We are,” Izuku said. “After all, we finally found our family.”

And they did and all was well in their souls at least for that night because that night a few more missing pieces of the puzzle were found and put back into place.

Nemuri threw her bouquet and soon she and Shouta were driving off to their honeymoon.

____________________________

* **knock knock knock** *

Izuku opened the door to his room in the dorms that they all insisted he kept into their high school lives. While Dad and Nemur- Mom… While Dad and Mom were on their honeymoon in Alola for two weeks he would be staying in it. Hitoshi lifted a hand. “Yo.” Izuku let him in. They sat on the giant bean-bag chair. His room in the dorms wasn’t much as he did actually live in an actual house. It basically consisted of a giant grey bean bag chair that took up most of the room, a lamp in the corner, and some books and games for whenever he came over.

“So? How are you?” Hitoshi asked. Izuku looked down at his hands. “I…” Chip came and curled up in his lap. Izuku smiled softly. “I am well,” he finally said. He looked up at his friend. “I am very well.”

And he was. Izuku and Chip were, for once in their lives just… okay. The truest form of ‘okay’ they could be. That day it felt like a lot of broken parts of them came together. He couldn’t wait for Dad and Mom to get back and for them to start their lives as a true family.

Izuku couldn’t wait to have a family. He was so excited. Hitoshi lightly punched his arm. “That is a good look on your face. It’s good to see your smile again.” Izuku looked up. “It’s good to smile again.”

It was a bit odd living with Ne- Mom. Her office space became a shared one with Dad. Izuku offered his sewing room but she out right denied. She was adamant on Izuku keeping his room for sewing. The house got a bit tighter with her and her two added pokemon but it wasn’t bad. Izuku liked having her around. Now living together, it truly felt like a family. Izuku and Chip felt all warm and squishy inside. At the start of it he was a bit wary. He observed Dad and Mom’s relationship to check for any signs of how Mr. and Mrs. Midoriya’s went but they soon caught on and shot that down before he could begin another spiral.

\-----

_ ‘There will be no gaslighting in this house,’ Dad said definitely. ‘If you have any questions or concerns we will talk about them and come to a family consensus, not just one person ruling over everyone. This is a FAMILY.’ _

\-----

Before he knew it, his third and final year of high school began. Izuku decided to join Theatre again. He and Bushida and Nagata and Sone made a ruckus of the place being the third years of the Theatre department. Well, Nagata was now a second year but there were perks of your best friends being third years. While all of his UA friends were already starting internships to be sidekicks at hero agencies once they graduated, Izuku was filling out a form for his plans after high school.

He was able to meet up with Yashio Palmero, the former Kalos Queen and famous contest judge Serena had told him that she wanted to meet him about designing. She had held off after everything that had happened and allowed him time to focus on being a normal teenager for a while. Who knew adults were so considerate? In the end, Izuku found his own path in designing. He decided to stick with more formal-wear but in the popstar field. He would work on designs for hopeful wedding dresses, formal dances, and hopefully for the coordinators like Serena who wanted to have a more formal or elegant look. Something like big or long flowy dresses that they performed in that when they got on stage it was all eyes on them for their elegance and beauty.

Izuku applied for the Anistar Arts University and got accepted. “So when I get big and famous,” Hikaru punched his shoulder as they walked, “you are definitely designing all of my awards ceremony suits, right?” “For a price,” Izuku smirked. “Ugh!” Hikaru fake swooned. “Shot through the heart!” 

Hikaru and him were actually going to the same university and put in forms to be roommates together. Hikaru would be studying acting to become a movie actor. “And you know that when you get those nightmares I will be right there for ya so you don’t gotta worry!” Hikaru puffed out his chest. Izuku doesn’t get it but the orange haired boy seemed to find some sort of pride in being Izuku’s best friend at Union Saps and just in general. He’s an odd dude but Izuku doesn’t hate that.

The score had been settled. Katsuki won the third year Sports Festival. Katsuki, Shoto, and Ochaco became UA’s Big Three. Those poor first year students when they did their presentations and Katsuki literally blew them all away… Or when they tried again against Shoto and ended up frozen solid. Or when they tried again again against Ochaco and couldn’t figure out how to get back on the ground.

“I was so close!” Ochaco huffed as she settled into their usual spot at Soft Blossom Bakery to read. They had continued that tradition into their high school careers. Izuku chuckled and pulled out their most recent book. “Give it time,” Izuku waved her. “When the Hero Ranking Battles swing around next year just prove you are better by ranking highe- Hey!” Chip reached up and snagged one of the macaroons. Mary Lou giggled from behind the counter. She kept the macaroons around specifically for them and then they grew in popularity. Mary Lou ended up turning it into a specialized macaroon bakery.

Time ticked by and graduation was upon them. Izuku cheered for all of his friends as they crossed the UA stage and accepted their hero licenses, their diploma’s, their contracts for the agencies they would be under until they grew up in the hero ranks and started agencies of their own.

“Aizawa Izuku,” his name was called at Union Saps High School graduation. Izuku proudly strutted across the stage limp, cane, and all. “WHOOOO! THAT’S OUR BUDDY!” He jumped and looked into the audience. The people once again gasped in awe as a bunch of now-heroes and heroes from UA stood in the crowd whooping and hollering. Izuku blushed and waved shyly before quickly accepting his diploma and scurrying off stage.  _ That’s so embarrassing!  _ But he knows they mean well. Nagata sadly said his goodbyes to Izuku, Hikaru, and Sone. They promised to keep in touch just like they do with Machida. 

They celebrated and spent their final Summer Break the best they could. Class 3-A had already started their hero work but they met up as much as possible. Soon enough, Izuku was packing for college. It was almost sad but in the same way not at all. Dad and mom helped him pack. They went down to Anistar City with him to set up his dorm room, meeting Hikaru there already.

“You can call any time,” Dad promised. “I- I’ll try to call before your patrols,” Izuku said. Pepper and Smokey had to stay with Mom and Dad as each student could only have one pokemon with them in the dorms, or two for those rooming together. Hikaru’s pokemon was a Gliscor. Dad and Mom hugged him tightly. “Izuku Chip, I am so proud of you,” Dad whispered. Izuku hugged him tightly. “I love you guys,” he said. He didn’t twitch at all to that word anymore. He had learned its truest and purest meaning and accepted it. “We love you too.” With a belly rub to Pepper and a horn rub to Smokey, Izuku waved goodbye to his family.

And just like that, Izuku and Chip started their adult lives finally free from the chains that tied them down to the hero field. 


	32. Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A few years of Izuku's life summed up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I cried.
> 
> How is everyone though?

* **ding ding** *

“Breon! Umbreon!” Izuku looked up at Chip’s call from the front of his shop, Everlasting Formals. He was currently in the back putting the last touches on a very special gown. He sighed and spun around in his swivel chair. Izuku slid the cane he had on a belt holster to have by him when designing and stood. He made his way through the Creation Room where he and all of his workers worked on orders together. Izuku had become quite popular in the world of fashion over the years after university. Now 33 years old and he has his own shop that is visited by everything from heroes and pop stars and their children looking for formal wear. He makes everything from wedding dresses to prom dresses to event wear and gowns to wear on stage. Recently Izuku has even gotten into men’s clothing and put out his first line of men’s suits.

“Looking good, Oba,” he waved to one of his employees who was putting the finishing touches on one of the final contestants for Kalos Queen this year’s dress. It was a bit odd considering the opponent of who would be wearing that dress was Serena and he was literally just working on Serena’s dress. “Thanks, Boss,” Oba waved back, not taking her eyes off of the gown. Most of his employees were female. His friends joked about how lucky he is and sometimes questioned why he doesn’t date anyone. It’s not like he has anything against it besides workplace relations. Izuku just has never had the urge to date. He attended many weddings and created many wedding dresses over the years including the one for Serena and Ash’s wedding but at some point he became fearful of those himself. He can so vividly remember how Mr. and Mrs. Midoriya’s relationship took a turn for the worst still. Ochaco once confessed to him that she likes him like that but he just… He doesn’t think he could rightly handle an intimate relationship. They are still great friends, still have their reading sessions at Soft Blossom Bakery when they both have time, and went on with their lives.

Years after graduating from Anistar Arts University and Izuku still struggles with multiple things from his less than grand childhood. He moved back to Lumiose City to set up shop. Every other week Izuku still meets up with his therapist he’s had since high school, Mr. Kirishima. He still has nightmares about twice a week and the like. It’s better now though. He can handle himself better now. He’s grown quite a bit.

Izuku pulls his hair out of his ponytail and prefixes it up again before exiting the Creation Room. His hair hadn’t changed much from high school. He kept it to shoulder length and pulled up in a ponytail when working with his bangs pushed back. When at trunk shows or talking with customers he pulls it up into a half ponytail and leaves his bangs brushed to the side to appear more formal. One thing that had changed was his glasses. He keeps his circular ones at home on display as a memory of Dad’s gift to him back when he was fourteen but now the ones he wears are rectangular ones with red frames to honor Professional Hero Midnight, aka his mother. 

“Hello, hello!” he greets. Chip trots up to him. Chip had been training for a while and began holding his form as Umbreon for most of the day. His yellow rings were rainbow though so that was cool. Chip, Pepper, and Smokey run the front of the shop when he is in the back along with one or two employees, alerting him when people specifically ask for him. Pepper evolved into a full Mightyena a few years back.

“Izuku!” a familiar voice called. He grinned. A tall, black haired girl with black eyes waved at him. “Inha!” Midoriya Inha, his biological sister. They never really felt like siblings but she attended his college graduation and they reconnected once he moved back to Lumiose City. She definitely inherited Mr. Midoriya’s genes with her height, eyes, and curly black hair and it took a while to get used to looking at her much like it did for Dad but Izuku had a lot of practice getting used to seeing Dad so it was a faster process getting to know her and see her without flinching. The freckles she got from Mrs. Midoriya though much like Izuku himself.

“Is this what I think it is?” he smirked. He has seen her engagement post on social media recently. Inha beamed. “It is! I want you to design and make my wedding dress.” She showed him her ring. Izuku smiled. “It would be my pleasure. Please, follow me to the consultation room.” 

Izuku may never see her as a sister but truly it was an honor to be the one to make Inha’s dress. He would put his heart and soul into it, just as he did for every gown he made. Each stitch is made with love.

Nine months later, Inha walked down the aisle in a beautiful, flowing white gown.

____________________________

* **ding ding** *

“I don’t know, I think the form-fitted shape looks good on you,” Izuku critiqued the teen as she tried on multiple prom dresses. “Really?” she asked. He nodded. “But if you don’t feel comfortable then we will move along-”

“Mightyena!” Izuku looked over his shoulder. “I’ll be right there!” He turned back to his customer. “So, what do you think? Want to move on to a new dress?” She shook her head. “No. I think this one is good.”

Izuku had one of his female workers help her out and ring her up and then Smokey took the dress to the back for fitting. Izuku left the Prom Dress Aisle to the front of the store. “Hard at work?” He rolled his shoulders. “Nooooo. Just days of working on _ your _ gown.” He snickered. “How’s it been, Serena?” The two met in the middle with a hug. “It’s been well. How about you?” He smiles. “Just about the same as always. Come on, I’ll show you your dress.”

“I can’t believe I am competing for the title of Kalos Queen in a few days,” Serena muses as they head for the fitting area.

“How do you feel?” Izuku asks.

“A bit nervous but I am confident in myself, Pancham’s, Delphox’s, and Sylveon’s routine and abilities.”

“When you win, what are you going to do after?” Izuku asks.

“Wow, someone is confident in me,” Serena jokes. “If I lose, I’ll go for it again. If I win, I will defend my title every year until I can’t. I will travel around putting on shows like I always do and keep up my WeTube Channel. I will probably go back to college and maybe train to become a judge or critique or something like Miss Yashio.”

Izuku nodded. “Makes sense. How is she doing by the way? I haven’t heard from her in a while. She did so much for me too…”

Serena smiled. “Her age has caught up to her but she is still going strong. She judges when she can but recently retired.”

The greenette led her to the back where he had Serena’s dress finished. The girl gasped when she saw it. “Oh, Izuku, it’s beautiful!” He smirked. “Of course it is. Who do you think made it? I’d never let you go out on stage looking anything less than the best dressed performer there!”

Three days later Williams Serena, Delphox, Pancham, and Sylveon won the title of Kalos Queen. Serena donned a fiery red dress, so=hort at the front and long in the back. Two large white angel wings were sewn onto the back and the glitter throughout truly made her look like she was glowing on stage.

Serena would later go on to hold the title of Kalos Queen for ten straight consecutive years. During that time she would attend school and after begin to raise the next generation of performers.

____________________________

* **ding ding** *

“Oh my gosh, it’s Bushida Hikaru!” “Isn’t that, like, that really famous actor?!” “I can’t believe I am standing so close to him!” “He’s just as hot in real life!”

Izuku sweat dropped as he approached the man in question. “You’re disrupting business, Hikaru,” he sighed. A tall man smirked at him. Hikaru had really filled out over the year and yet his body was slim, perfect for being the model he is and perfect for being the actor he also is. His hair was shorter and swooped to the side but it was still it’s brilliant orange. His tail had grown longer but his horns and wings were still rather small in size though that was one of his best selling points. Many of his fans found it adorable.

“Oh pssssh,” Hikaru waved him. “You know you love me stopping in. He, Chip!” he knelt down and pet the Umbreon that ran up to him with happy chirps. Izuku rolled his eyes. “Yeah, it’s great having your business. Come on, let’s get some tea in the back and you can tell me what you need.”

As it would turn out, Hikaru was nominated for the Golden Face Acting Award and was in need of a suit. “Do you know when you will find out if you actually won or not?” Izuku asked as he took Hikaru’s measurements. Hikaru shook his head. “Nope, not until the day of. They will announce it while we all sit in the audience.” Izuku hummed. “Talk about dropping a bomb,” he muses.

Hikaru laughs. “Woah there!” Izuku’s arms pinwheel as he trips on the elevated stand Hikaru was on. The orange haired boy caught him by the arms. Izuku peeled his eyes open and let out a breath of relief. “Thanks.” Hikaru helps him up straight. His friend looks at him with a worried expression but Izuku waves him. “My cane just happens to catch onto the stand sometimes.” Hikaru frowns. “No, it didn’t. Your legs are giving you issues again, aren’t they, Izuku?” “It doesn’t matter,” Izuku returns to his work. “As long as I can continue doing what I love.”

Six months later Bushida Hikaru strolled onto stage in a pure black suit, even the under shirt. Built into the fabric were swirls lined with just enough sparkle to look not too feminine and still glow on stage and look different. It really played on his devilish features. In that suit, Hikaru accepted the Golden Face Acting Award. In another couple of years he would return to the boutique in search of another suit to accept the Kalos Top Male Model Award.

____________________________

* **ding ding** *

“Oi, nerd! Where ya at?!” Izuku huffed. He swung around in his chair and got out. He waved his employees as he left the Creation Room and entered the front of the boutique. “Katsuki, could you not make it any more subtle that you stopped in?” The blonde smirked. “I don’t roll that way.” Izuku stopped at the back. “Come with me. I really don’t feel like walking all the way there.”

“Lazy bones.”

“Broken bones.”

“Weren’t they dissolved or something?”

“Same difference.” Izuku sat in the back with his blonde friend. Katsuki was massive. Certainly, being the soon-to-be-dubbed Number One hero will get you to that size muscle-wise. A massive scar split his face right down the middle diagonal. Izuku thought he;d have a heart attack when he heard Katsuki was in the hospital that time. Sure, he did get injured as a hero but that fight almost killed the explosive hero. “I don’t want anything too fancy, you catch? I want it to look almost like I am still in costume but like fancy or some jazz.”  _ ‘Fancy or some jazz’ he says. Could you not be any more vague?  _ “Oh, and something for the gang.” Katsuki, without waiting, lets out his pokemon.

Izuku sighs. Katsuki had a full set of six pokemon: Typhlosion, Charizard, the female Pyroar, Infernape, Arcanine, and Salazzle. Izuku took note of how Charizard kept his tail hidden from Izuku’s sight. The smell of smoke still slightly wafted into the air but Izuku could handle at least that much at this point. Open flames still… shook him a bit. It was a sweet effort though. He knows Katsuki told the pokemon beforehand. He may not seem like it but he does have a heart somewhere under that rough exterior. Izuku called in a few employees. He cracked his knuckles. “Let’s get to work then, shall we?”

Izuku was busy for the next few months as his hero friends each stopped by to get fitted and their own personalized “Izuku Suits” as they named them. He attended the awards ceremony where Katsuki as Professional Hero Ground Zero accepted the title of the Number One hero in black dress pants and nothing more than an orange dress vest with white flames lining the bottom of it. No undershirt, no blazer, no tie. Just about every hero there was wearing something Izuku and his employees hand crafted. He was able to catch up with them all and they all went out to eat.

____________________________

* **ding ding** *

“Izuku, hurry up!” The greenette scrambled to put on his blazer. “I’m coming! I’m coming!” He rushes out to meet Ochaco, Shoto, and Hitoshi. “Take care of the shop for me, guys!” “Got it, Boss!” his employees yelled back.

Ochaco held the number five hero spot. Shoto held the number two after Katsuki. Hitoshi did a very good job at keeping his level low-low even if he is an amazing hero. He is underground, after all, and tries to keep a low profile. “Meowstic!” Meowstic floats down to rest on Izuku’s lap as he rolls on the sidewalk with his friends. “Hey, buddy!” he greets. “No cane today?” Shoto asks. They all look a bit weird, with hats and sunglasses. Obviously trying to keep their cover. Izuku shakes his head. “Not today. Actually, not at all this week says my physical therapist.”

“You’re going back to physical therapy again?” Hitoshi asks. The designer chuckles dryly. “Yeah, but I don’t think much will change. It’s basically just a downward spiral from here.” “Did they say why?” Ochaco asks. Izuku nods. “Originally my legs were rebuilt with the flesh from dead heroes, right?” They all mentally winced. “Well I guess it is kind of mine now and the cells are more mine than not but my legs have been slowly dieing or something. That’s what the doctor says at least. It isn’t as bad as you think though.”

“Izuku, with all due respect, anything that comes to you as ‘bad’ in life is about 100 times worse than you make it out to be,” Shoto huffs. Izuku and Chip sweatdropped. “You know my therapist says the exact same thing!” They all sigh. “Either way, I really mean it this time. It only happens about twice a month where I have to use my wheelchair aside from in my house. They gave me about three years before I am wheelchair-bound again.”

“That’s not very long,” Hitoshi muses. “It’s fine,” Izuku promises. “I will still be able to work and that is enough for me. Oh! We are here!” 

‘Here’ as in they just arrived in front of the newly formed Young Heroes Orphanage. They arrived an hour before the official opening. Why? Because a crowd would most definitely be there and they would like to be able to get in, thank you very much. Izuku’s UA class got together many years later once they had the money and their hero careers were stable and they set up this orphanage specifically for children pulled from abusive homes or traumatizing events that caused them to lose their families.

“Hey hey hey!” Denki ran up with Ash. The two ended up making a hero duo as Denki’s electricity fueled Ash’s quirk. “Welcome to the party, guys!” Everyone from the class was there. Izuku looked around. Yup, they were all still wearing the green pearl earring. It was asked about by the media so many times as they never took them off. Neither did Izuku. All was said was that it was in support of a dear friend. It wasn’t long before the media connected the dots with Izuku’s identity and him wearing the same one. Izuku doesn’t wear too much jewelry anymore nowadays but that green pearl in his right ear is a staple in his life. 

Izuku got a personal tour of the orphanage. There was a dining hall, a playground type dome outside with a glass covering, the sleeping quarters with separate ones specifically for those who simply couldn’t handle sleeping with other people in the room, a stay in counselor, and more. Just trying to accommodate the children that would be coming and he knew they would. After his case, Detective Tsukaushi and the heroes really cracked down on abuse cases and noticed more discreet signs of abuse. Izuku will never be happy about his life but it feels good to know that his rough start to it didn’t go in vain and people were getting help off of it.

That day, Young Heroes Orphanage was opened. As often as possible, the heroes and Izuku himself would visit and encourage the kids as much as they could. With the top heroes in the region as well as Izuku as the top designer, Serena as the reigning Kalos Queen, and Hikaru as the top actor sponsoring it, the children got the best lives they could provide and many looking to adopt first stopped there. It was always a longer process to get a child from this orphanage though as every one who would adopt first had to take a mandatory class on how to handle different types of trauma.

____________________________

* **ding ding** *

Izuku smiled sadly as the man walked into the boutique. “Hey, Dad,” he greeted. “Hey, kid,” his father greeted. Izuku sees this man every day almost but today was a sad day for Dad to enter the boutique. Today he was getting a suit because in a few days they would be attending the funeral of Aizawa Kimika, also known as Izuku’s grandmother.

She had a good life, Izuku thinks. It was a shame she passed away due to cancer. Izuku had just been up in Dendemille Town to see her one last time two days ago. She finally went to reunite with her deceased husband. Dad, still an underground hero and teacher at UA, got off to attend the funeral. He would be retiring from the hero field soon but continue to teach at UA.

Nothing too fancy but to show his support, Izuku made Dad a simple suit, just the same as he made Mom a simple dress, each black. A few days later Izuku walked up to the casket of Aizawa Kimika. They had a really bumpy start. Izuku was so rude, so untrusting. She was so unrelenting in her love and wisdom. Izuku truly loved this woman. She was a great grandmother. He could still see her smile as he looked down at her.

Izuku grunted, pushing himself up from his wheelchair. Dad and Mom held either of his arms to let him stand and say his goodbye’s. Chip lay on his shoulder in Eevee form so he would be small enough. Izuku reached forward and gently took the elderly woman’s hand. Tears wet his eyes. “Thank you for everything,” he whispered. He heard Chip sniffle. “I love you, Grandma. Goodbye.”

A sad day indeed.

____________________________

* **ding ding** *

Years would pass in Izuku’s and Chip’s lives. Many times that little bell on their boutique door would jingle. Dresses and suits would come and go. With each one he met and learned about a new person. Why they came in for that outfit. The significance behind it. The more he made and the more people he met the more his appreciation for life that at one point he never had grew. Whether it be a wedding dress to symbolize the start of a new life with one’s true love or a simple dress for a funeral to celebrate the passing of life. Whether it was a performer’s gown to show they were giving it their all or the formal wear for one celebrating their hard work for all they had accomplished. Izuku saw them all and began to see life in a million perspectives. Each and every stick in the assembly represented each step the person who would wear it took to get where they were currently.

Many ups and downs still came with Izuku’s life and by the time it came for his life to end the pain he felt about living life was changed to the pain of knowing he would leave it and leave all of this behind.

____________________________

* **beep** …  **beep** …  **beep** …*

Shouta sat by his son’s bedside with Nemuri, Umbreon, Chip, Smokey, and Pepper. Izuku coughed weakly into his hand.

Only 47 years old, Izuku was losing a battle to cancer, much like Shouta’s mother did. The years of inhaling smoke and being trapped with it in that basement when he was young finally caught up to him and gave Izuku lung cancer. Chip has it too. He isn’t expected to live much longer than his trainer. A year ago they had lost the ability to walk completely too. Shouta is only 64 years old himself. He never thought he’d be living longer than his own son.

The hospital room door opened and in walked Hitoshi and Serena. Izuku smiled over at his friends. “Hey guys,” he said softly. “Hey, flunkie,” Hitoshi joked sadly. They were called in. Izuku wasn’t expected to make it through the night. “Guess you decided to flunk life too?” The greenette laughed before it dissolved into a coughing fit. Serena and Hitoshi joined them on the other side of the hospital bed.

Time ticked by. They didn’t do much. Izuku was in too much pain to really do much anyway. But they talked and reminisced about life as much as they could without crying.

“You know,” Izuku finally said, “I didn’t think I would ever not want to die.” Shouta’s grip on his son’s hand tightened. “I used to wish for it so much. I even tried to kill myself once in the basement before Mr. Midoriya stopped me. In fact, I think that if I didn’t have the dream to design my dream would have been to simply die. Of course,” Izuku squeezed back weakly, “a few stubborn people changed that.” Tears all filled their eyes. Izuku gently pet Chip’s head as the Umbreon rested on his trainer’s lap. They all let him get out his final words slowly and tiredly. His body was dying. “I think that if there is one thing I regret it would have to be not learning to love sooner. I used to hate so, so much and now I love so, so much. Serena, Hitoshi, you were my first friends. Dad, Mom, you were the first true parental figures in my life. I couldn’t imagine ever hating you guys. In fact, I would go so far as to say I love you!” Tears streamed down Izuku’s face. “I do… I really do…”

* **beep** …………  **beep** …………  **beep** …………*

Shouta’s head snapped to the heart monitor as he finally noticed the slowing tempo. “Dad…” Izuku whispered. “You’re there, right?” He looked back at his son, tears streaming down his face. Shouta reached over and took Izuku’s glasses from the bedside table. He carefully slid them onto his son’s face. “Y- yeah,” he fought to keep his voice from shaking. “I’m here, kiddo.” Izuku smiled.

* **beep** ………………  **beep** ……………….. **beep** ………………*

“Hey, Dad,” Izuku smiled. “Hey, Izuku,” he smiled back through the tears. “Don’t join me too soon, okay?” “I- I won;t.” Izuku nodded. Foggy viridian eyes searched wet black ones.

“ **I love you, Dad** ,” Izuku finally whispered. Shouta choked on a sob as he felt Izuku’s hand go limp in his grip. “ **I love you too, Son.** ”

* **beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee** -*

____________________________

Aizawa Izuku lived a short life. It was filled with ups and downs and tears and laughs. It was a life story you only heard of from inspirational speakers. He started from rock bottom. In the small, no name town of Vaniville a boy born without an element was born. He was rejected by his family and raised in pain. He learned to hate the world and everything in it. He was lost in the shadows, the one forgotten by the world but at some point a glimmer of light broke through the darkness: Aizawa Shouta. Through this man Izuku learned to love again. He learned to smile, to laugh, to dream, and to hope. To have compassion on others and to live life again. It may not have been the most ideal life to live but at the end of his life Izuku could not find a reason to hate where he ended up. All because just one person stepped out of their comfort zone to help them, all because one person decided to care, Izuku’s life of pain and sorrow changed for the better. And at the end of his life he was surrounded by the people he loved and people who loved him. Izuku was born sad and he died happy. Izuku finally reached the light at the end of that dark tunnel.

If he could say one thing he was thankful for it was that before he died he learned to love.

____________________________

❤ **THANK YOU❤**


	33. Authors Note

Howdy! It's **Krumble**!

Well, we've reached the end of "Rise to the Top!" It was a wild journey, that's for sure. Thank you all for all of your love and support not just through this story but for my last two as well. Your comments are the reason I found the will to continue writing. I kept thinking that maybe this story was a bit shorter than the others? And then I remembered how much I wrote for each chapter and was like naaaaah it is probably a lot longer than I am thinking it is. Numbers can be deceiving, ya know?

Many of your comments were sort of along the line of being excited for my next story and the like. I'm not so sure though. I feel like I have an idea or something for another one but it hasn't really come together in my mind so well so I guess we will have to see on that. I might continue writing on here and I might not.

By any means, if you have an idea for a fic you'd like me to write please do comment it! I can't promise I will use it but I might or it might trigger another idea? I had considered doing one about the life of Aizawa Shouta or doing a fic about what if Izuku was stuck in the house from Granny (the mobile game) or something too. Dunno. I would probably stay in the Boku no Hero Acadamia field and the trauma writing field and all. If you have ideas then I look forward to seeing them!

Also, I post my fics to Wattpad as well but I don't really have a cover for this one so if anyone wants to make one and send it to me to use on Wattpad so I can post this then feel free to do so! 

Well, i guess this is coming to a close. The world is a crazy place, y'all. It's full of sin and pain and too much hate and not nearly enough love. I encourage you to look around you and to reach out to the lost and the broken. Everyone needs love. Please don't forget the unloved.

Thank you all for sticking with my story. I love you all.

Sincerely,

with lots of love,

your author,

 **Krumble**.

=^-^=

(P.S. If I make another fic I will post it here!)

(P.P.S. Suicide Hotline #: 800-273-8255 )


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